DD has ringworm on scalp- should she have medication?

[Pimmsbear]

Been battling ringworm on DD and myself for 7 weeks with multiple trips to gp.
I have daktarin cream & terbinafine tablets as am covered in it. DD has it badly on her arm and in her scalp and is using prescribed canesten creams &now an antibiotic cream on her arm. For her scalp GP has given ketoconazole shampoo. 3 weeks later her hair is going patchy & bald spots.
Everything I've read online says ringworm on scalp needs oral medication to clear not just shampoo, even in children. Saw GP today & she is adamant it will go away with shampoo only & says she has never in her career prescribed anitfungal medication for a child. Made me seem like I was crazy for asking.

Anyone had experience of this?

So doing all the obvious like washing laundry & bedding daily on boil wash & not sharing tings, bleaching brushes etc, I'm like a woman possessed!

Arrrr i feel for you. Had an awful battle with this. I was very against pills for my 5 year old and we cleared body with special cream from herbalist..
Propolis myrh and other bits. Used daktarin. Gave allicin max and paul darco drops and used ketaconzamole shamp on the spots on the head. Cut out sugar. Took the whold blinking summer but we are clear and hair growinh back. Oh stripped bed every day and hoovered!!! Sorry you have this to deal with.

Thanks for that, I definitely don't want her to have medication if it can be avoided, I'm on it & it's bloody awful, just worried as to whether we can actually cure her scalp with shampoo alone...

Sorry, I have no experience of it on the scalp, but just wanted to say that in my experience Canesten often doesn't entirely shift it. Daktarin is much more punchy. Is there any reason why DD is on Canesten, not Daktarin?

OMG you poor thing. Ringworm almost drove me demented. Never on the scalp thank goodness. All three boys had it and I say in the GPs and cried I was so stressed.

Id see a different GP maybe for a second opinion?

Oh ! Just remembered. Teatree oil as well as the cream - I used it on other bits as a comparison and it was fab.

Noeuf, yes I've cried a lot! Literally feel like I'm going to have a nervous breakdown with it all. Every day I wake up and there are more on me. Got it all over my face which is the worst part.
DD was told to use canesten as it was gentler on her skin? Just petrified that her hair will get worse.
Thanks for tip on tea tree oil, having read pretty much everything on the net about it in the last couple of months, I'm using tea tree as well on me, but haven't dared try on DD yet.

Remembering it now, my oldest son was given tablets because he was covered. He was probably about nine?

Use those bleach wipes on surfaces and door handles. It made me feel better psychologically.

Id maybe buy tea tree oil conditioner and shower gel ? Can't hurt (maybe ask the GP) . For me I used it near or in almond oil

www.livestrong.com/article/92927-apply-tea-tree-oil-ringworm/

It may technically be gentler, but Daktarin won't necessarily cause a problem. Our GP prescribed it for my DD when she had a patch on her leg at 1 year old, and she was fine with it, despite having sensitive, eczema-prone skin. It cleared it up in less than 10 days. Maybe it might be worth trying, if the Canesten isn't hitting the spot? If it does irritate the skin, surely you just stop and go back to Canesten? As PP said, tea tree is also v good.

I feel for you all, it's horrible, I would be very upset if it was on the scalp. Hope it turns a corner soon.

To be fair, my mental well-being was really suffering so I think my GP recognised this and didn't try the wait and see approach with gentler stuff.

I just felt like it would never go, that we'd keep re infecting each other, that the cat was the problem (she wasn't!) and other people since then have been really blasé about it.

Thank you for all the advice, it's nice to know I'm not alone with this, feels like the end of the world at the moment. DD's hair is now so patchy other children have mentioned it. Still unconvinced she doesn't need tablets...

I'd go back, I really would. Or can you afford a private appointment with a dermatologist (last one I had was £180) for advice and possible private prescription?

We did it without...will try and post a pic. She was covered...absolutely covered and i did have a nervous breakdown. It was awful. From June (greek cat) to september/october. Ketaconzanole and then i used need oil. Myrrh. Garlic zapped mine. Mince...leave for 10 mins...apply and leave for 20 mins. Active properties only last 50 mins so you have to mince it about 4 times a day. Got rid of mine but my little one couldn't tolerate it even dilluted. Allicin tablets from boots are anti fungal without side effects so is pal darco......hang in there

Thanks Noeuf, am wondering whether a private consult might be the way forward. Our GP surgery is small & rural, can't really ask anyone else, so maybe that would be an alternative.

Shewolfmum, thanks for your message. It reassures me to read that a) it stressed you out, b) it took months, & c) it did actually resolve without medication. I'm going crazy dealing with it, we're nearly 2 Months in, but if I know it can be done then it gives me a bit of hope!

What did you do with the neem & pau d'arco. Are they safe for children? I've got Allicin max tablets for me, but DD is only 6 & don't think she'd swallow them.

I give allicin max on a spoon with a bit of honey (break open capsule)...paul darco i have tincture from herbalist and gave drops in a drink and neem i mixed a bit with a base oil and put on her head. Oh yes i also used diluted iodine on her head...let me know if you want some as i have bottle left. Neem oil was also in her herbal cream. Boil washed...hoovered...cried...withdrew...couldn't cope...i also used homeopathic remedies

How you getting on pims?

A child (7ish) I knew had the same issue a few years ago. It took ages to diagnose as it was only in one area on the back of her head which kept breaking down into a purulent, bleeding sore.

I believe she had a total of 12 different creams and shampoo prescriptions before the Gp arranged for her Mum to sit and wait with her in the foyer outside a Dermatology Conference so the experts could have a look.

She was very quickly diagnosed with ringworm and prescribed 6 months of oral antifungal drugs. They worked but she still has a bald patch on her scalp.

It is a bugger and i am left in awe of fungus.

Oh i just remembered...i ised ketakonzanole shampoo daily on the two rings on head. One was a kerion. Did whole head every 3 days..then continued daily on rings and whole head weekly.

I cant believe I found this thread. I'm currently sitting in bed crying as I dont know what to do. Ive spent most of today on the phone to 2 doctors, 1 hospital and 3 private hospitals! I have been back and forth to the doctors for 4 months. First son got ringworm then 2 months later second son caught it. Getting hold of the oral tablets seems to be impossible. I feel like i'm losing the plot!! Every website says its 'very common' so why is it so hard to get it treated?? How did you get on @pimmsbear?? X

I didnt mention that both of mine have it on the scalp too. One GP told me 'in 30yrs she had never seen ringworm on the scalp' so gave me cream for dermatitis (which made it worse!) Ive been told they need oral tablets by another doctor but no GP can prescribe them and they need to see the dermatologist at the hospital.....still waiting for an appointment!

cks.nice.org.uk/fungal-skin-infection-scalp

Print this out and take it to your gp (it's the guidelines the GP should follow, issued by NICE /NHS clinical knowledge summaries)

'Treatment
How should I treat scalp ringworm?
If a kerion (pustular boggy mass) is suspected, refer immediately to dermatology.
If kerion is not present:
In children, consider prescribing an oral antifungal if confident of the diagnosis and experienced in treating scalp ringworm in children. Otherwise, seek specialist advice.

'Oral antifungal

The recommendation to use oral treatment for scalp ringworm is based on the exert opinion of the British Association of Dermatologists (BAD) [Higgins et al, 2000] and the European Society for Paediatric Dermatology (ESPD) [Kakourou et al, 2010], and is supported by evidence from a Cochrane systematic review [González et al, 2007].
Oral antifungals penetrate the hair shafts (whereas topical antifungals do not and, therefore, cannot eradicate hair shaft infection) [Andrews and Burns, 2008; Kakourou et al, 2010].
Unless the prescriber is confident of the diagnosis and is experienced in treating scalp ringworm in children, specialist advice is suggested before prescribing an oral antifungal for children. This is because terbinafine is not licensed for use in children, and there is a lack of suitable alternative treatments.

Topical antifungal

The recommendation not to use topical antifungals alone to treat scalp ringworm is based on expert opinion from BAD, the HPA, and the ESPD [Higgins et al, 2000; HPA, 2007; Kakourou et al, 2010].
Topical treatments do not eradicate hair shaft infection, and although there may be temporary improvement, this is followed by relapse in most people [HPA, 2007].
Topical treatment is only used as adjuvant treatment to systemic antifungals [Kakourou et al, 2010].
The recommendation to combine topical antifungal preparations with oral antifungal drugs at the start of treatment to reduce the risk of transmission to others is based on evidence from case-control or cohort studies [Higgins et al, 2000].
The HPA recommends the use of selenium sulphide shampoo, ketoconazole shampoo, or another topically active antifungal (for example terbinafine cream) at least twice weekly during the first 2 weeks of treatment [HPA, 2007]. CKS has included topical imidazoles as an option because they are active antifungals, and all but ketoconazole cream are licensed to be used in children.
Ketoconazole is licensed for use in adolescents and adults only [ABPI Medicines Compendium, 2013e], selenium shampoo is licensed for use in adults and children aged 5 years and over [ABPI Medicines Compendium, 2012c], and terbinafine cream is licensed for use in adults only [ABPI Medicines Compendium, 2013b].'

Oral's are bad news to be honest can mess up liver. Use ketakonzanole shampoo daily for 3 weeks just on the areas...weekly on whole head...treat with natural anti fungals like allicin max and pal d'arco...

Thank you for the advice but all the GPs have said its the hospital that needs to give the oral medication. It wouldnt be so bad it the referal date wasnt 4 months down the line. They have both developed kerion. Ive been using the ketakonzanole shampoo for 4 months and its only got worse. Ive been told to chase the referal on tues. If i have no luck i think i will just go to the hospital and demand to be seen!