Baby with eczema scratching face

[Stargirl90]

My 4 month old has eczema, has been prescribed zeroderm ointment just over a week ago which at first I was using twice a day but now applying 5 times a day to his chest and head. The main problem is his scratching over night, hes constantly wanting to hold onto material so easily pulls off his scratch mitts. The ones built into his sleepsuits just come open.
Not sure what to do to help him , I hate seeing his head read and scratched , and all greasy from the ointment :(
I've seen HV twice too, first time they said he has silent reflux (been dealing with that by sitting him in a chair for bottles which has helped with the screaming during feeds) but when I went back following week about everything they said it could be cows milk allergy causing both the reflux and eczema but to keep using the ointment for now. It just didn't seem to be getting better just worse :(
Any ideas how to keep his scratch mitts on overnight? Or any other ideas on what I can do for him

Hi, having had 2 eczema babies you (and they) have my sympathy. It's a bumpy road with often no obvious reason for the ups and downs!

You need these:
www.eczemaclothing.com/eczema-scratch-mitten-t-eco-organic-pack-of-2

This clothing saved our sanity. There are various options but this basic can be used for day and night. It seems expensive but is brilliant quality, lasts endless washes and is outgrown rather than worn out. You won't regret it.

Hadn't heard of Zeroderm so just looked it up - similar to Epaderm (plenty of experience with that!) It's an all-purpose emollient and there are many. It's also a petrochemical based one so you might like to look into more natural emollients, something like this one that we love balmonds.co.uk/products/skin-salvation.

Any really good creams you find yourself can sometimes then be prescribed by your doctor- this was the case for us with Aveeno. They have their standard (usually cheapest) recommendations to prescribe but there are many on their 'list'.

If the emollient isn't controlling the eczema, you may need to go back for a steroid cream. Don't be afraid of it - the risks are only and from long term use. What you need to do is use the recommended dose (enough to leave a visible sheen not a teeny cautious smear) for the shortest time possible, usually about a week. It can work wonders. You might need to do it again later on.

Some eczema can be related to skin being easily colonised by bacteria such as staph aureus - things like honey, sea salt and tea tree oil are supposed to have a natural antibacterial effect and can be worth experimenting with in baths etc.

Although eczema is classified as a dry skin condition, there are many trigger factors and dealing with the dryness alone will generally only ease symptoms not fix the condition. It could be related to the milk, then again it could be a sensitive gut due to an immunity issue that will react to lots of foods. You may never really know, but keep experimenting and trying different things.

@twillow thanks so much for thorough response!! Those tops look perfect for stopping nighttime scratching, during the day I can see and stop him but overnight it's the worst. I think the itching is waking him up on a night too as he was sleeping through at one point now he often wakes up crying. Must be so frustrating for him.

I'll order some of those tops and keep at it with this ointment for now, if I don't get anywhere by weds next week I might see HV again.
His chest sometimes looks like it's getting a bit better but I think it's harder to smear greasy ointment all over his head and in his hair so it's not working so well there

Thought of another couple of things worth trying (we have been through the mill!) - sea salt baths (big handful - antiseptic and healing), or oatmeal baths (handful in a pop sock or bit of muslim, hung under the tap or squished around to make the water milky). Those might help with the itchy head/hair.

Oh for pity's sake. Eczema + reflux = CMPA, until proven otherwise. Go to your GP, and if they won't listen demand referral to paeds. This is eminently sortable with prescription formula*.

*Comes in two groups, Hydrolysed formula is partly broken down, with the protein basically snipped into smaller pieces, so harder to have an allergic reaction to. If that doesn't work, amino acid based formula is made of the basic building blocks proteins are made of, so basically impossible to have an allergic reaction to.

Everything is worth investigating. In my case, my baby was entirely breastfed when the eczema started and I removed dairy from my own diet too, but it didn't help unfortunately.