Eczema on baby's face, help please!

[crabapplejam]

Baby is 5 months old, has eczema on face. I've taken him to the doctor already and they've given us a mild steroid cream which takes the redness away but doesn't clear it. Everyone I stop using the cream it gets worse.

I moisturise very regularly with epaderm and aveeno.

Please help because I'm not sure what else to fj to help him 😥

I think you may need a referral to a dermatologist or immunologist to treat that. There are many treatments after mild steroid that can help.

There is a procedure for weaning off the steroid too, are you following that? You can't just use it until the skin is clear. You need to taper down the amount over a period of time

I don't want to frighten you but just beware of food allergies. Eczema on the face that isn't clearing with treatment is a red flag that means your baby is at higher risk. Doesn't mean they do but they often go hand in hand. There are slightly different protocols you may need to follow for weaning so worth getting support with that

My DD had eczema on her shoulder and it cleared off with calendula lotion.

Thanks for your reply, no one mentioned a weaning off process, not the gp or the pharmacist?!

Maybe that's where I'm going wrong

Balmonds skin salvation really helped with my little grandchild.
Available on Amazon and Holland and Barrett .
Old fashioned and good !
Hope your little one gets some relief soon .

Im just going by what my son's consultant said. Twice a day for for x days and then once every day then every second day etc. he had a slightly different protocol and product for his body and for his face.

Also the first lot of steroid he had also had an anti fungal in it as apparently that is common with unresponsive eczema.

Also allow at least 15 mins but ideally 30 mins between the application of the steroid and any other moisturiser or emollient. Doesn't matter what order they are applied in. The eczema uk website has lots of good info

@crabapplejam Mine was very similar at that age!! We tried various creams from the doctor and pharmacy but La Roche Posay balm was the only thing that worked for DS. Used it morning and night consistently and it made a huge difference 😊

DS is now 3 and you’d never know he had it! He occasionally gets a small patch (about 5p sized) on his cheek when the weather has been particularly cold, or a small patch behind his knees. We just use the La Roche Posay as his daily moisturiser and it seems to have worked wonders for him 😊

As @Whentwobecomesthree pointed out, eczema can mean that allergies are more likely so just something to keep in mind when you start weaning. Doesn’t mean they definitely will have so don’t stress over it - just make sure you introduce allergens one by one so that you can keep an eye 😊

What do you mean by “moisturise regularly”? Babies’ faces get smeared with tears, milk and food so frequently it isn’t surprising that a skin prone to eczema will get irritated quickly and often.

With my DS the answer was to try to keep a layer of emollient such as Epaderm on his cheeks to act as a barrier as well as a moisturiser all the time, as well as using the steroid cream as often as prescribed under the emollient to calm the irritation.

Keep moisturising as often as needed. You can’t overdo the emollient creams. And you won’t do any harm with them. They simply protect the skin from drying out. Don’t confuse them with the steroid creams, which are very important in soothing the eczema but should only be used as frequently as the prescription specifies.

Best of luck OP. A lot of babies outgrow eczema. My DS had only had the odd dry patch for many years now but at one point he was pretty near covered in eczema from top to toe.

Aveeno really helps mine and my children's. I think it's a case of trial and error with lots of products. I've personally found none of the steroid types worked at all.

Just seen you're using aveeno. Maybe weaning off the steroid and just using the aveeno? Really hope you find an answer I know how horrible it is to have and to see your children have.

Moo Goo is really good.

Removing egg and dairy from my diet solved it for us.

Are you using wipes on LO's face at all? My DF's LO had this and she's been using wipes regularly on his face.

Product trial and error. Central heating can also impact it. But make sure the skin gets a bit of fresh air to breath - just a few minutes at a time as realise it’s cold.

My daughter was like this and worse as a baby. Push for a dermatology referral, as they will be able to give you so many more treatment options than the GP. Age 5 we barely even get a flare up now, it's so well controlled with Protopic, which is a TCI, and regular emollients.

nationaleczema.org/eczema/treatment/ is a useful guide

Thank you to everyone for your advice and sharing what worked for you. I'm trying not to stress about it. I've got no experience at all in managing it.

Hi

currently in exactly same situation with 5
month old, have you found anything that helped?

Hey,

I'm happy to say it's lots better now.
I stopped using the steroid cream, and instead was religious with application of ointment we got prescribed (Epaderm).

I was putting it on almost two hourly at one point and always before going outside in the cold (guess that's not so applicable now) and before bed.

I also stopped using fabric conditioner and did an extra rinse cycle after washing on all our clothes.

It's so so much better since that.

If it does come back I find it's when there's been lots of drool (teething) combined with rubbing his face on things but it settles quickly.

Hope that's helpful. One thing I learned was that there are different triggers so it may be about finding what yours has been and doing best to avoid it.