Is it eczema? And what do I do?

[bloss]

Message withdrawn

May well be eczema- sounds like the way ds1's started. As its only mild I would just continue to moisturise-- you can try various emollients and see which works best. Bath daily - but ONLY with oil in the bath - should be able to get something suitable from your doctor- oilatum is a common brand in the UK, DON"T use soap- use aquaous cream instead- that can be whisked up in the bath rather than oilatum as well if its not too bad.

if it doesn't shift at all it would be worth getting it checked to make sure its not a fungal infection.

Hi Bloss, my ds is 2 and he suffers from mild exzema - but still bad enough to cause discomfort. What you are explaining does sound like exzema to me, but your GP will be able to confirm it. I use a mild hydrocortizone cream (prescribed by GP) for when flare ups are at their worst, otherwise I use Aveeno cream. Aveeno was reccommended to me by fellow Mumsnetters and I can not rave about it enough. They also do an oil for the bath, and it's all oatmeal based. You can buy it OTC but it's quite expensive, so get it on prescription from your GP!

Very sound advice from Jimjams, I would just add that hidrocotisone should only be used on flares (red patches which are impossible to miss)and should not be covered by bandages.

Being the first time he gets it I would check what may be causing it: new washing powder (Using non-bio detergents and nothing else solves many problems), it may also be that he is sensitive to some pigment or material in clothes, if you have got a new plant, pet or got some unusual food, all those may be triggers.

Yes I've been using Aveeno cream and it's wonderful. I haven't had to use hydrocortisone for ages. My wonderful gp gave me a renewable prescription for 4 tubes at a time as I use a tube a week and it's super expensive..

hello bloss
poor ds excema is excruciating ,its so hard not to scratch it and this just makes it worse.
after years of not finding anything that works really well i got some exorex lotion on prescription and it is the only thing ive ever found that soothes and takes the itch away.(some of the stuff the docs have given me is just rubbish)
I had to ask doctors twice before i got it (first doctor told me it was only for psorisis but its not its for excema as well-see exorex web site)
its a yellowish coaltar product and combined with hydrocortisone works well
ps you probably know this - be wary of using too much hydrocortisone on a child
of course you could always try a homeopathic remedy( i think silicia is recommended for excema but check this with a homeopath first)
another thing i would strongly reccomend you to buy is calendula OINTMENT in a green tube made by weleda.brilliant cream soothing and easily absorbed works miracles on red dry skin
hope this helps and hope he gets better soon give him a sympathetic hug from me xx

my ds1 got mild eczema and after combing mumsnet i tried a pack of unrefined sea salt(tel. around local health shops) in the bath once a week with porridge oats in a sock left to run under the hot water tap. it cleared up in about 3 weeks. there were a few mums who reported that their childrens eczema had disappeared when they allowed them to swim in the sea. porridge oats contain wheatgerm/vit e in its purest form. i only bathed him once a week and didn't use any soap/shampoo also applied 'sk cream' on the area which really helped. recommended in the sunday times column by susan clarke author of 'what really works for kids' if interested tel. margaret evans 01526 832491. she has a website - can't find at mo. order the lanolin free version, keep in fridge. very small pot but goes a long way, i think it costs £9.95. this was about 6 months ago and we have had no more eczema.

My dd suffers from excema as well and on your recommendation I'm purchasing the 'sk' cream. Do you recommend any sun tan lotions? The commercial ones just irritate his skin.

Just a warning about reducing the number of baths- it increases the risk of infection. At the hospital they made a big point of saying that I should be bathing ds1 daily- preferably twice daily- but only ever with oil- never in water by itself. His eczema was very severe- the only clear patch of skin was on his feet and as he was being wet wrapped he had to be bathed at least once a day anyway- but all modern advice from dermatologists is to bath daily to prevent the risk of infection. A lot of GP's still say to reduce the number of baths, but most GP's are clueless about skin....

There are lots of things you could try.
Defintaly moisturise more to try and keep the dryness at bay, and to try and stop the itch scratch cycle forming. You could try hydrocortisone cream on flare ups, tho sometimes u need something stronger. be aware that the skin can get infected, so if its goes to a yellowy crust or starts weeping, then go see a gp to get it seen to, as broken skin is easily infected and not as easy to shift.
Bath daily, but also add a bath addictive for ezcema (there is a large range, people have menti0on aveeno, also oilatum(normal, plus, unfrangenced) , eurcerin (5 or 10%), balneum,
whisked up aquous cream. It can be a case of trial and error to find one that works. same as with the emoillants, its all trial and error.
I find that a light lotion (dermol500) works better on my dd1, whilst dd2 needs something more intensive. DD1 responds well to hydrocortisone OINTMENT, whilst dd2 needs the cream version.
So as you can see, its all confusing and it is hoping you find a combination that works well for you ds soon.

I read this thread with interest as my ds2 (8 weeks old) seem to have developed excema. His skin is dry and flaky all over. With some quite red patches. We are bathing him in water with oil added and using emulsifying ointment to moisturise him, but it is not getting any better. The remedies that are mentioned on this thread - are they suitable for such a young baby?

its probabkly best to check with a gp about what he can use. dd1 had hydrocortisone 0.5% at around 6 weeks old, as she has some bad patches on her face. they had to up that to 1% after a while.

what oil are you using? and what emoillants?

I hope your baby grows out of it, i'm still hoping my girls will, but dd1 now has gone out of the atopic ezcema stage and has sebhorric (sp??)ezcema now.

IlanaK, my DS had eczema ALL OVER and I saw a dermatologist. Apart from prescribing steroid cream which we did use but only use occasionally now, he also recommended bathing twice a day in warm to cool water, washing with acqueous cream inc scalp and using a wash cloth that gets boiled or cotton wool that gets thrown. When I get some aqueous cream from the pot I have to use a spoon that doesn't touch DS's skin and that gets washed so that I don't introduce bacteria to the pot.
My son has been on this programme since end of April and it cleared up very quickly. He occasionally gets a patch maybe every 2-3 weeks which I dab a bit of streroid cream on and then it goes.

jzee - i use green people or you could try weleda. both do very gentle sun creams for children. i think you can buy weleda from nutricentre another is 'neals yard'

I went to boots today to buy the Aveeno cream and they refused to sell it to me! I asked if it was suitable for my ds due to his age and they looked it up and there were no contraindications. But he asked if I had seen a GP. When I said no (don't need to as I know what excema looks like!) he refused to sell it to me! I was really pissed off - it is not a perscription medicine for christs sake! Anyway, we went to a different boots and told them it was for me and they sold it to us. We tried it tonight as well as the oat bath thing and his skin feels lovely now! I will apply it religiously and hopefully his aweful sking will clear up

P.S. Did anyone else notice that it is made by Johnson and Johnson? I found this really ironic as we avoid their products like the plague due to the sodium laurel sulphates in them that irritate excema!