Please help me with my son's face

[fartfacemcfartfaceface]

I am absolutely at a loss about what to do with my 7yo ds. His mouth constantly looks like this. Sometimes he has impetigo which I treat with ficudin cream. But he has developed a kind of 'tic' where he constantly licks and stretches his mouth resulting in this red rash which looks bloody awful but he insists it isn't sore. I've set him a challenge that if he can get it looking good and keep it clear for a month he'll get a reward of his choice, but that was a week ago and it still looks like this. I've tried picking him up on it every time he licks/stretches and that hasn't worked. I've tried ignoring it and obviously that hasn't worked either. I don't know what to do next. Anyone had any experience of this?

I've tried Vaseline, I've tried lanolin, I've even put plasters around his mouth which works until they come off and he starts again 😖

I definitely think it's fungal. He is constantly licking it keeping it moist and the fungi thrive in moist conditions.

You can use Daktarin oral gel for this. It's ok inside the mouth (for oral thrush) so if he licks it he won't come to any harm.

I went to see pharmacist with him this afternoon and she's confirmed it's just the licking and says she doesn't suspect it's a fungal infection. She said keep it moisturised with lip balm moisturiser and barrier cream and must stop licking. Need to keep on it which is going to be a mission with him going back to school tomorrow. The teacher won't have time to be on his case about it.

Thanks all for all your tips by the way - much appreciated!

A mild steroid cream overnigjtfor a few nights may help to clear it up.

I remember my lips and the surrounding skin being a total mess one winter and nothing was helping. My housemate lent me her Elizabeth Arden 8 Hour Cream and they were completely healed within 2-3 days. It’s expensive stuff though and it stinks.

Blistex is the only thing that helped my dd. It burns initially as its ammonia but lessens every time. Use it every hour for the first day and was virtually gone within 24hrs.

Dd2 has almost developed this over Christmas, she always seems to have dry cracked lips (mine dry and crack very easily too). It seems to have spread to under her bottom lip as shes developed a slight habbit of messing and liking her lips. Last two nights I've put bepanthem - (nappy cream but it's a brilliant barrier cream as well) on her lips and they have cleared up a lot.

DD had this several times and GP prescribed fungal eczema type cream - called in lick eczema. She tended to get it when temperature changed and/or from swimming.

I know this is an old thread (and this my first ever Mumsnet post!) but I am beside myself with worry (it’s 4.47am) as my 5 year old son has just developed this tic in the last couple of weeks. He is my perfect brilliant boy and I can’t understand what’s happening to him. He hurt his lip, and I think to soothe it started to lick it. Now he is doing this compulsive licking and stretching grimace, and it’s fairly constant when he is not engaged in conversation. I don’t think he is aware of it. It’s got so bad so quickly and I am am absolutely terrified that when he goes back to school after half term the other children will notice and make fun of him. In agony here! I will start applying lip balm or a barrier cream today. Can @fartfacemcfartfaceface say whether this improved and what helped? Thanks in advance!

Its a fungal infection.

My dd suffered with this horrifically for years. A pharmacist cleared it up overnight when he advised an antifungal cream (( actually athletes foot cream))

Thank you — we have dr’s appt next week!