severe excema on babies face..swollen eyes and weeping skin

[lynny70]

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if it is actually weeping then it sounds like it's infected - my dd1 had fucidin cream for her face when this happened, it is mild enough to use on the face. Otherwise aveeno cream is an excellent emmolient which you should nag your GP to give on prescription as a small tube is over £6!
IME health visitors aren't much cop over this sort of problem, neither are most GPs! but do pester for aveeno and try out different solutions.Good luck.Chandra will probably have lots of suggestions!

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I think if it is weeping then it is likely to be infected and you will need an antibiotic cream to clear things up. My dd had a quite serve excema which become infected (didn't realise it was infected at the time) and I didn't take her to the doctors for sometime...wish I had as once we had applied the antobiotic cream in cleared up within a couple of days.

definitely push for antibiotics (mine was fucibet), worked wonders for my dd

My doc always said do nothing too then finally prescribed steroid cream for DS. Turned out he was allergic to bananas and I was breastfeeding him and eating loads of bananas for energy and then weaning him with bananas too later on.

This might not be the case for you but I always tell people in case it is the thing that triggers it in their child.

I hope you find something that helps.

Linny, the important thing is to break the cycle, if the eczema is infected (weeping)no amount/brand of cream will make it heal. Ask GP for Fucidin (without the HC) and apply on the weeping spots until 2 days after the area has cleared. While the skin is cracked use Diprobase (only cream I have tried that doesn't sting though you may need to apply it very often to keep the skin fine -I used to apply it 8 times a day, but then, DS eczema was very bad). Once the cracking and weepins is gone try Aveeno or Eucerin 10% urea twice a day both can be prescribed if you pester the GP enough though, as not many GPs are exactly familiar with them they feel a bit reluctant to prescribe them as they are "apparently" more expensive, considering you will nead less cream to keep the skin OK, they are actually the same price as Diprobase or cheaper.

Agree you need to sort out theinfection first. if skin is very very dry then 50:50 is great (you can ask for it on prescription) its like a very gloopy vaseline. Other parts of the body can be wet wrappped (so can the face but really not worth doing unless very very severe) - and the skin comes out all yummy and soft for about half an hour

Chandra - or anyone else who knows.

What is urea?

I have severe excema and skin tests showed i was allergic to several ingredients in cosmetics/toiletries one of which is immadiazonyl urea. I always steer clear of anything with the word urea in as i am not too sure whether it is the same thing? As you mentioned urea i thought you may know more than i do .

For those who are interested, many creams and lotions that claim to be for sensitive skin etc also have the ingredients i am allergic too in them, so don't assume they won't aggrevate the condition just because they 'claim' to be for sensitive skin.

Aveeno definitely gets my vote though!!

hi there lynny70 my dd of 10 weeks had this and my HV gave me a topical cream and a bath oil....and since using it has started to clear up...so if you are not happy please go back and demand some help.

HAttie - I have sensitive skin and am now using a range called Pure Earth - not sure if you can get it in the UK but it is fab... use the baby bath for hte dds and the shampoo and conditioner on our hair - hair is great .....

here maybe you can get it shipped to you in the UK - cost quite reasonable when you consider the exchange rate.

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I'm afraid is a cycle thing, in our case it has come and go for 2 yrs but definitively it has diminished its intensity. For many, it may disapear suddenly around 12-18m, or as in our case, you just note the thing is getting sorted because you realise one day that it has been ages since the last time you applied HC.

HAttie, I really don't know the answer to your question but I understand where are you comming from. DS is allergic to soya and nuts and many eczema products are made with them, like Balneum and a multitude of more natural alternatives.

Linny, I forgot to say that the only way to prevent another bad episode of eczema is by keeping applying emollient regularly, and attack red patches as soon as they appear (before they have a chance to become cracked and then weeping). Then, if the skin looks fine for a while you can try reducing the amount of emollients (going from 4 applications to 3 and so on until you find the perfect "dose" for your child)

Children also get flares when they are stressed, this doesn't mean that the baby is having a bad time at all, as they may get stressed by simple things as a change of routine or a holiday. I

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Thanks Chandra

Lynny you are right, emulsifying is harmless. The greasier the better. My skin gets so bad that most nights i smother myself in the greasiest cream i can find such as white soft paraffin - similar to vaseline - this soothes it, stops the itching and if i do itch in the night it prevents me from breaking the skin. By day i use Aveeno as it isn't so greasy looking when applied to skin!

Hi there - my DS had excema when a baby but not quite as bad as your baby's sounds - HOWEVER - DS got worse when I tried moving him from formula to "proper" milk at around 18 months. Turned out he was allergic to dairy. We cut it out completely for a year and his skin totally cleared up. Even though he can now have dairy I do notice that too much cheese sets him scratching again. Maybe worth considering that it is allergy related - docs don't seem to accept this too often though - we were lucky with a Bulgarian pediatrician.

check out Elenas Nature Collection -www.elenascollection.co.uk for a natural alternative to steroids for infantile eczema and available on the NHS

just thought i'd add my twopennorth. we have found the best emollient is called epaderm.its a mixture of vaseline and emulsifying ointment and is really thick and gloopy, but works a treat.
if the skin is weeping don't put anything on but the fucidin-once its dried up-moisturise like mad.
top tips we got from our community paediatric nurse were never to put your fingers in the pot of gunk. Wash your hands and then scoop out amount needed with a spoon.and if you are applying gunk to say the face and then the body, wash your hands in between.it just makes sure that no infection gets passed from one part to another and nothing gets from your hands into the cream. i'll be honest, its a pain in the arse but it seemed to help.
the other thing that was very effective for my son, was homeopathy. His face was very wet -weeping and bleeding constantly. After a couple of days on the homeopathic treatment, it dried up and it's never been wet like that since.i know there has been a lot of stuff in the papers about it lately-not being effective- but it truly worked for him.

The weeping could be wet eczema or an infection. My DS had a bacterial and fungal infection at one time. There is a specific steroid cream for this. I found Tea tree oil very good for dring up the weeping and reducing infection.
Try reducing bathing or time in the bath I find water very irritating for eczema.

Try a water softner have a look here - Healthy House