Baby acne or Cows Milk Allergy? Photos inc.

[MrsM2021]

Before I begin I have sought medical advice but no doctor seems to know what they’re doing.

We thought my 6wo daughter had reflux but over time she’s had more symptoms than just vomiting feeds/watery painful vomit after feeds, she’s gassy, constipated (currently 48 hours with no poop and she’s in pain), constantly searching, chews on dummies for relief, constantly upset etc.

She broke out in what I thought was baby acne about two weeks ago but it’s steadily got worse and now is everywhere! Is it baby acne or does it look like a potential cows milk allergy? She’s formula fed.

TIA

It looks like a heat rash to me.

I think what this thread show is there are a million different types of rashes that babies get. Some go on their own. Some respond to emollient. Some could be milk allergy - but that is not most of them.

You dd is already on goats milk formula....was that a change from regular formula? If so she's having a lot of changes in a short space of time. Babies do take a while to get used to things. Try not to swap and change too often with knee jerk reactions.

You had the infant feeding specialist at 2 weeks. You are paying for a private peadiatrician in another few weeks. Is this your first child because it can be a big adjustment having a baby. Some doctors aren't great. But some are. So listen too.

I'm not dismissing you concerns. But equally listen to the professionals too. At 6 weeks I definitely loved my son the most but was still an extremely inexperienced mummy.

I’d be wary of using anything on the skin which has anything ‘food’ based like Aveeno(oats) or coconut oil at this stage. If the baby has CMPA then other allergies are higher risk and introducing potential allergens through the skin at this age is not a good idea.
Definitely use emollient though. Hope it is just baby acne and clears up soon.

Can you go to see a paediatrician or a paediatric gastroenterologist? If you're in London you'll find an appointment in the coming week.

Sorry just saw your message where you said you've asked for a private referral but that won't be for weeks. You don't need to get a referral, just google paediatricians in your area and make an appointment with their secretary.

Dc3 who was bf had baby acne, it was awful, his whole head chest and back area were covered, it eventually cleared up, no cmpa though. Dc 4 who was bf had cmpa diagnosed when I started weaning and he was throwing up anything that contained milk (I rarely ate dairy so his projectile vomiting from breast milk was rare). He had some milk spots but during weaning he also developed rashes around his mouth and loose stools, Dr put him on Nutrimigin and we used oat milk etc, he's fine now and can tolerate a % of dairy aged 5. Dr's were very quick to diagnose cmpa and I do think it was because he was number 4, doubt very much if this would have happened so quickly with dc1.

Here are some pics of my DD's CMPA rash. This was while she was on Nutramigen, so it wasn't as bad as when she was on the normal formula, before this it had looked very like your LO's. Nutramigen is a good starting point for cmpa and often works fine but my DD's allergy is severe and the formula wasn't hypoallergenic enough to stop her reacting fully. No creams would clear it, although I used coconut oil to relieve the itch for her. We moved to a more hypoallergenic formula (Neocate) and after having a rash for months it cleared up fully in just 10 days, and there was a definite improvement after 2 days.

In my experience you have to really push to get a diagnosis and prescription for formulas, I was fobbed off as an anxious first time mum and stuck on anti-depressants (anyone would he depressed with their child covered in rash, vomiting, foul nappies and screaming 12 hours a day 🙄). If you have any questions, happy to help.

@Bluey18 I’ve already been prescribed citalopram as I’ve been fobbed off. I took it in the initial stages and blamed myself but I know my child and it is normal for a newborn to scream inconsolably for up to ten hours a day, their poop to make you gag to a point your eyes water and almost projectile vomit after every single feed then clawing at her eyes/face in pain. Amongst the symptoms also listed above.
I find it so difficult to swallow other mums (as someone has done above) basically perpetuating the notion that I am somehow over reacting when this is not normal. I’d travel to the moon and back to make sure my daughter is okay 😂

The rash she has always clears up overnight and then as soon as she has her first feed of the day it explodes.

Did Neocate constipate your little one? At this rate, I don’t even care about a formal diagnosis, I just want to ensure she’s happy without putting her through hell first on wrong formulas and medications.

NOT NORMAL sorry!

@MrsM2021 it's hard hearing your description because that was almost exactly my experience too, it's so hard! And for what it's worth your baby's symptoms sound very similar to my daughters. I would say trust your instincts and keep pushing. If I had followed the initial advice my child would still be suffering as she still has severe CMPA at nearly 3 (every chance if it is CMPA your LO will grow out of it long before then, we were just unlucky it seems. My daughter is thriving now on the right diet though).

Neocate didn't constipate her, it did turn her poo dark green/brown though. Apparently that's normal for that formula and it did not bother her. As she was a bit older (5 months) I had a struggle to get her to take the neocate as it does smell and taste very strong. So the younger you can switch (if they need it) the better. Almost all her symptoms went on the Neocate. The only remaining one was vomiting, but it was no longer projectile vomiting, it was a small amount after eating which didn't seem to bother her and cleared up on its own once she had better head control.

And sorry, I've just spotted that they gave you gaviscon for her, that's the first thing I was given also and aside from not helping thr symptoms it also constipated her so if she's not pooing at the minute it could be making that worse.

Please ignore others opinions that you are overreacting, they don't know your child. It sounds terrible but I left my phone on record one night while I was walking the floor with her just so I could show people (mainly the GP!) how hard she was screaming. People were shocked when they heard her and funnily enough never told me I was overreacting again

I felt the same, it was my 4th baby but I just knew there was something wrong, I tried everything I could find fir the reflux and gastric issues and all the creams for the spots but it didn't help.

I had to push the GP when I saw the blood in the poo and got a referral to a pead doctor.

The neocate didn't constipate my baby, just dark green poo like pp said and she didn't go very often as apparently there's barely any waste with neocate as it contains everything they need and not much else.

I also went to A&E twice about the rash and they always sent me away and make me fee I was over reacting. I just knew deep down there was an issue.

Always go with your intuition and push.

I agree with everyone else, it does sound like it could be CMPA - stand your ground. It took us seeing three different doctors and a trip to A&E (where I was definitely fobbed off as an anxious FTM - baby was six days old and a midwife friend of mine said what she saw in her she’d never seen in another baby but hospital said it’s ‘normal’… it wasn’t) before one finally said ‘you’re right, it seems like a dairy allergy’ (previous ones had said ‘just reflux, here’s some Gaviscon’ and ‘gastroenteritis’). The health visitor was also great though when we saw her (after diagnosis as that’s how appointments fell but I wish I’d called earlier) - might be worth a try?
Alimentum Similac made my DD worse but like many PPs, Neocate has been a god send.
Hope you get it sorted soon, it’s horrible watching them suffer.

Just wanted to come back and update.

So! Got fobbed off yet again at the GP so we found a private dietician who took one look at my DD with her rash and listened to her symptoms and agreed that she’s pretty sure it’s CMPI at the very least and a full blown CMPA at most. She immediately sent a prescription to the GP for Neocate. She said to start on that and she will take us through any formula changes depending on how my DD does so we’re dealing solely with her now. No nasty medication trials, no ridiculous intermediary formulas, nothing. I’m so relieved.

Thank you to every single person who came onto this thread believing me and being supportive. I can’t tell you how much I appreciate people sharing their experiences and not making me feel stupid.

So happy for you @MrsM2021 - and I hope your doctor takes note!! Do let us know how your little one gets on with the Neocate - the change was pretty immediate for us. I remember one of the first sleeps she had after it and she was still and silent rather than writhing around grunting and wheezing and it was incredible! Hope it all gets easier from here on out xx

@SkyBlue20 she’s had three feeds of Neocate today and I can’t believe it...we put her down awake in her cot AND SHE FELL ASLEEP!! She’s completely still and quiet and actually fell asleep independent from me and without screaming.
I actually said to my husband that it got me worried there was something wrong because she has always had to be sung to, rocked, pushed in the pram, bounced etc to sleep and when she has been put down she’s wheezed, grunted, slammed her legs down, arched her back, cried in her sleep too and she’s completely still and quiet.
It’s made her reflux slightly worse but I think that’s normal because it’s a thinner formula so the dietician is going to help us with that.

I can’t believe it. I might actually get some sleep too for the first time in six weeks!

Great that you got a diagnosis OP. There's a very helpful Facebook group - "Main Group- CMPA Support". I've found it invaluable (and my DD is 7 now, still CMPA).

For the reflux you may need eg omeprazole.

I’m so glad you got the proper help you needed. your Dd is gorgeous.

The Drs you’ve seen should be bloody ashamed of themselves- fobbing you off and calling you neurotic.

@LizzieSiddal sadly that is completely common with CMPA. It took us almost 6 months to get a diagnosis (and then it was only because my mum suggested it and the GP went - well if you think that's the problem you can always go dairy free - I was EBF). 6 months of baby screaming in pain every minute of the day; she wouldn't sleep for more than 30 minutes at a time at night. And I too was made out to be a neurotic first time mum who didn't have a clue that "babies cry you know". Hundreds of similar stories on the CMPA Facebook group. Glad OP got a diagnosis relatively quickly (albeit by going private).

Sorry you went though that Isee. My Dd has just gone through a similar thing with her baby. Baby screaming all hours, obviously in pain and also getting rashes. She was Ebf and was told to cut out all dairy for 3 months. It didn’t help at all but was told she had to carry on. It’s shocking that babies are left in distress like this and mothers are made out to be making a fuss over nothing.

I'm so happy for you OP, it's such an amazing feeling when they are actually calm after weeks of crying. Delighted you got an answer when she's still so young although I think it's a disgrace how we keep getting fobbed off over these allergies. I'd second the Facebook main CMPA page, great resource, I'm still on it for my DD. Well done you for persevering xxx

[quote MrsM2021]@SkyBlue20 she’s had three feeds of Neocate today and I can’t believe it...we put her down awake in her cot AND SHE FELL ASLEEP!! She’s completely still and quiet and actually fell asleep independent from me and without screaming.
I actually said to my husband that it got me worried there was something wrong because she has always had to be sung to, rocked, pushed in the pram, bounced etc to sleep and when she has been put down she’s wheezed, grunted, slammed her legs down, arched her back, cried in her sleep too and she’s completely still and quiet.
It’s made her reflux slightly worse but I think that’s normal because it’s a thinner formula so the dietician is going to help us with that.

I can’t believe it. I might actually get some sleep too for the first time in six weeks![/quote]
So happy for you, @MrsM2021!! It’s such a great feeling when you can see them sleeping peacefully! If you’re anything like me, you didn’t sleep that first night but I hope you got some rest last night.
My DD was about the same age when she was diagnosed and it seems we’re very lucky it was so early. She’s also got reflux that she is on infant Gaviscon for - it’s tricky to find a good amount to control the reflux but not make her constipated, half a sachet per bottle seems to do the trick for us but it was a lot of trial and error.
Good luck with it all and again, I’m so, so happy for you that you’ve finally got answers xx

I just wanted to post a side by side after three days of Neocate for anyone who like me is googling this in future for their child who they suspect has CMPA to find and look at. I always find old threads on Mumsnet which have really helped me so I’m going to leave this here.

The rash was related to CMPA (not being an inexperienced new Mummy) and has cleared up in three days.

If your baby has colic, reflux and a rash like this related to feeding then push with your doctor.

@SkyBlue20 I didn’t sleep that first night either!! But we got 8 hours last night broken up with one feed. We’ve got a way to go with her reflux so thank you for the tip about the gaviscon amount but we have a much happier, calmer little girl.

Mummy instincts really are incredible. Thanks again all for such supportive answers, I really appreciate it xx

sometimes my daughter can be really unsettled and just cry for a good hour, won’t eat sleep until eventually she cries herself to sleep in my arms… she has this rash and mucas in her poo, and after she’s had a bottle can be sick often but a lot more of it I’d say a good few ounces of the bottle in one go. just wondering what it could be… the very red rash is when she gets very sweaty
she is breastfed and has a bottle a day of formula for her vitamin D drops

It really depends on how old she is @paigebrady - witching hour crying is quite normal in the first 3-6 months, a mild newborn type rash can be normal as babies get all sorts of skin complaints, that poo seems a normal colour for a breastfed baby and some reflux isn’t uncommon either so it’s quite hard to tell if it’s anything more.
My DD would cry for up to 16 hours non stop, constipation, the rash was inside her ears and on the soles of her feet so was very pronounced. DD2 had green diarrhoea for weeks, would vomit entire feeds and scream/back arch after feeds for hours, wouldn’t sleep at all so again, it was very clear she’s had an allergy.

Probably best to take your baby to the GP, they will have more knowledge about all the possible reasons for the symptoms above.

My baby (now 12 months) had acne like that. He was covered! The GPs kept telling me it was just acne but he had loads of other cmpa symptoms too (explosive, frequent and mucousy nappies, bad reflux and in general feeding was a nightmare).
it turned out he does in fact have cmpa. His skin cleared up really quickly once on the correct allergy formula.