5mo with Possible CMPA / Eczema? HELP!

[GetTheSprinkles]

Oh wise women of Mumsnet, please help.

FTM and my 5mo DS has been getting along well. Big boy (91st centile), normal nappies, generally happy, sleeps ok etc. He does spit up A LOT & hates being on his back but has always been a happy spitter so I never worried too much and just use the washing machine constantly.

However, 6 weeks ago he developed eczema. Red, dry rash on his cheeks, back of ears, back of neck and chest. He is so itchy, especially at night and his mitts are often covered in dried blood, as are the sheets.

First GP was no help as she thought it was a viral rash that would clear up without intervention. A few weeks later, the next GP agreed with me that she though it was eczema but didn't want to give any steroid cream just yet and advised us to moisturize 10 times a day.

We have tried Cetraban which didn't help, Aveeno which didn't help, Doublebase which didn't help and eventually Diprobase which the GP prescribed and has (maybe?) helped a little.

We use non bio powder, bathe every other day (using doublebase as the soap/shampoo) and try to not let him get too warm.

Anyway, I am EBF and would never have even though of a food allergy or CMPA but the other day I had him in a sling while eating cereal and a few drops of cow's milk fell on his neck (which is red with ezcema already). A few minutes later, this area was angry with hives! GP didn't seem fussed but told me to give Piriton. By the time I had got to the chemist, the hives had gone (and when I tried to give him the Piriton he spat it out anyway).

After a bit of research, I'm now worried he may have IGE CMPA. What does everyone think?

Neither DH nor I have any allergies/sensitivites/eczema (though I've always though DH is lactose intolerant and he is of Asian descent) so I'm finding this really overwhelming and would love to hear some personal experiences and stories.

I'm currently day 7 of Dairy/Soy/Egg and Peanut free and haven't noticed a change.

Any anecdotes / tips would be really appreciated and sorry for the long post!

It does sound like CMPA to me. If the GP suspects this, they should at least refer him to a Paediatric Dietician.

Ok, so possible a niche subject! Anyone?

Oh Jilted, sorry I didn't see your reply. Thank you for this, I think that would be really useful.

Youngest son has severe IgE milk allergy [+ nuts, peanuts, eggs and shellfish and intolerant to most fish] I do mean severe - he has epipens.

For the eczema side: Use a none-bio liquid in place of powder. Powder can leave a greater residue on clothes which can act as achemical irritant on inflammed skin. I found liguid BioD and Ecover could cope with most things.

It can be trail and error to find the right emoilent for your child's skin. The National Eczema society is very helpful. The only thing that helped my son was intensive daily application 'wet wraps' which took two hours to do and over anti-scatch bed clothes made by this company. They are not cheap but they last through the many washes they will get. www.eczemaclothing.com/

I too EBF. My son's IgE allergies landed him in A&E by six weeks of age. I had sat next to a lady eating a Danish. [Nuts were near him only] After that he was under a peadiatric dietician and regional children's hospital. He was reacting to the foods I was eating. His blood test results showed an IgE results were through the roof to the point they repeated them. If milk got on his skin hives were the least of his problems. He used to look like he had chemical burns. His toddlerhood was spent wearing neck to toe dressings to try and control his skin reactions to just being a kid around others. Your son's reaction may have been down to milk acting as a contact irritant on sore open and raw skin. If the same reaction happened on areas of 'good' skin that is definatly one to watch. Take great care with soap as some contain milk proteins - I once found out about a soap the hard way. IF he ate anything that contained milk his lips would swell up and go lumpy, he broke out in rapidly spreading hives and would be projectily sick. Inside of his mouth would blister as would his throat. We ended up on first name terms with almost all triage nurses at most A&E's near to where live until my son learned to stop putting things into his mouth without asking if it was safe to eat.

An IgE allergy can cause anaphylactic shock. It can cause a slower cacade reaction. A severe IgE allergy will show on a blood test. An IgE allergy will need careful oversight from a peadiatric dietician. I had to learn how to use an epipen whilst calling paramedics. Any new food meant he had to be admitted to hospital for a medically suprivised food trial. Even the 'milk ladder' was too dangerous to try at home. he spent the first five years of his life living on brown rice, broccalli, granny smith apples, organic chicken, carrots, oats, apricots and a nut free soy milk replacement formula from the hospital. IF an allergy os found to be lifethreatening I recommend paying for 'medic-alert' as opposed to just an SOS type talisiman.

IF you see a severe simple skin reaction make a note what caused it, photo it and use the prescribed anti-histime ASAP. ALWAYS head to A&E first if in future his skin reaction causes blisters or looks like a burn especially if the area is greater in size than the palm of your son's hand.

His father has an anaphylactic reaction to eggs. His uncle to eggs, fish, nuts and milk - he was severe and used to be in an out of the same children's hospital. My father had a severe intolerance to milk, sister an allergy to eggs that always needs an injection of antihistimines. Son's IgE comes from both sides.

The good news - thanks to the worlds most boring exclusion diet for many years his IgE reaction finally damped down enough that he no longer reacts when other people eat food he is allergic to near him. He still has to avoid the food he is allergic to. Any new drug, vaccine or similar that goes into his body and he still has to spend a day under medical supervision 'just in case'. Its a bit of bother but he does not mind as he knows the doctors are doing all they can to keep him safe.

@triballeader Thank you so much for taking the time to respond. I can't imagine what your family has gone through with this and it's so good to hear how well you managed everything and that things have improved somewhat.
I'm going to look into all of those things and am switching to the washing liquid from today (currently using powder).
That's a really interesting insight Re the milk reaction being on eczema skin rather than 'regular' skin.
I'll keep this thread updated as we find out more x

Ecover is stocked by most supermarkets. BioD is a little harder to find. If his skin is still VERY sore try 'Surcare' liguid. It is not cheap but it does not contain the most common irritants for eczema prone skin. Try white vinegar in place of fabric softner. I used to swap between the washing liguids using surcare when he was really bad. The pollen count is very high this year and that MIGHT be irritating his skin even further.

Hope you find a detergent for his clothes that helps ease your poor son's skin so he feels more comfortable. It is horrible when you struggle to comfort a itchy painful skin baby.

My son had a 'cool' teddy' made from pure smooth cotton into which I put a frozen sealed bottle of water. Kind of like a none sticky reverse hot water bottle. You could make something similar by repurposing a cotton baby vest and stitching the neck and armholes up. Choose one he likes the most. Avoid 'plush' or velour pile like cotton toys as they tend to stick to severe eczema.

During flares or if he is unlucky and is severly affected rotate any of his loved fabric toys that cannot take a 60C wash. I recommend bagging them and freezing them for 48 to 72 hours as that helps kill dustmites. I used to tell my son his toys were off on a holiday to Antartica to looks for penquins but this toy was just back from their holiday.

In the end we had all the carpets ripped out and the house laid with wipe clean floors. The sofa was wipe clean and everything that could not be wiped clean was either washable or freezable. It was not something down lightly- we did this when nothing else had really helped as it is disruptive and its not a cheap option to undertake.

Just going to add - my sons most severe eczema flare ups always conicided with those rapid growth periods small children do. I think that rapid growth and dust affected his eczema prone skin far more than his allergies.

That's all very interesting; thank you for sharing as this is completely new territory to me.
He's not taken a shine to any particular toys so I'm going to keep the teddies away for now.
I had been wondering about pollen actually as we have been going on a long walk each day.
I suppose it's all trial and error and hopefully we figure out what triggers him. He's growing rapidly at the moment; I feel like I'm throwing out clothes because they're too small on a weekly basis!