Exczma help wanted again DESPERATELY!

[Angeliz]

Hi all.
Well i am coming round to the nightmare of exczma! I have tried everything you all suggested on my last thread but nothing has worked so far.
My poor ds looks like he has big open gashes behind his knees. I took him to the G.P last week and he gave me hydrocortisone cream which seems to be making it worse.
I have fucidin H cream upstairs as it was prescribed once for a week and it cleared it up immediately.
So, even though the Doc says it's not infected should i use it for a week to clear up the wounds?

I am really struggling and DP and i are going to see if we can get him referred to a skin specialist as nothing we've tried has worked
Would the fucidin H be really bad if it's not infected. (BTW, for me that's a sign of how bad it's got as i am anti drugs if anything!)

Yes me too. It looks awful.
I think i'll just try the fucidin H cream again.
Also i think i'll just used cooled boiled water to bathe his legs for a few days till my water settles down!

Thanks for all the advice evryone

I hated wet wrapping and I am sure the water irritated him.

If you email me your address I will send you Aveeno cream to give it a try as have loads stashed under DSs bed - I have used it on his since he was a baby - if you can get an appointment go the doctor and ask him to prescribe that and the cream and ointment - Boots also sell it in Bromley - our local so I presume they will in other places - I am not sure what my email is on the CAT but you can use:

[email protected]

don't wet wrap if there's a chance it is infected.
use the fucidin h, and lots of emollients.. whichever one you like using is the best one.
fucidinh is the same strength as hydrocortisone, and mild. if not improving back to the GP , some areas have specialist community eczema nurses, not many but if you're lucky you may have, if not ask for a referral to specialist.

Yes- surcare is very good but quite expensive. I think they might have started doing larger packs now though. I use the surcare fabric softener and persil non bio powder which seems to work fine.

Our little boy had eczema all over him last spring. We tried a protective lotion called Dermaguard and it cleared up within a week. Like magic. We had to use it on and off most of the summer until whatevery he was allergic to had gone away but haven't had to use it over the winter. If you do use it, don't use any other cream at the same time or it won't work properly. You can buy it from lakeland I think or try the internet. Hope this helps. We were desperate too at the time.

Twinkie1 thankyou that is so kind. I ordered it already from Sainsburies and it will be there on Monday now they're not in a tizz about it being 'baby' cream.
I started the fucidin H on his legs and they are on the mend but we now have a new spot.
Behind his ear is oozing, crusty and ocbviously VERY itchy as it's driving hi9m mad. I have to go see my G.P on Monday and explain that i started the antibiotic cream and show her his ear.
I never get to see my G.P as she's hardly ever there and very hard to get an appointment with but the other G.p who i see, although he's nice i get the feeling he wants me to resign myself to the exczma and deal with it.
I want a referal for a skin specialist. Do you think i'll get it?
I'm getting a bit worried they'll think i'm a hypocondriac as i'm there so often with ds.
I know people have mUCH bigger worries than this but it's really getting me down today!

In my experience the consultants (2) I saw gave me the same advice as the GP. Steroid creams getting stronger if need be and wet wrapping. It will take your own analysis of the situation to see what you think triggers your child's eczema. At his age I suspect teething may cause flare ups but you will have to monitor him like a hawk.

Allergies could also be a contributing factor but again hard to isolate.

Thanks for all this great advice.
I have him an appointment at 10.30 with a G.P (not mine as she's STILL on holiday) and i am going to ask if he'll refer me to a specialist even if it's just for more information as most of the G.P's just don't have the time or inclination to go deeper than skin creams.
Wish me luck!

Angeliz I don't know if this will help but I'll suggest it anyway. Ds2, who is now 3, had had exczema since birth. It has never been too bad, just two patches on each arm which was being kept under control with Aveeno but lately he has been scratching a lot and there has been bleeding and it was just looking very sore.

Dh insisted on wetting ds' arms and while they were still wet, applying Vaseline. And this has really helped a lot. Dh says that it is crucial to wet the skin first so that the cream/vaseline traps the moisture.