Steroid cream - eczema

[Laurappo]

Been prescribed this by the GP. Its a bit of a last resort but we have tried evething for a few months now and hos eczema is pretty bad. Actually no, it's really bad and inflamed now.

It's 1%

I'm going to give it a try as the GP told me to so please don't hound this post telling me not to. My question is any good experiences to share from anyone regarding using steroid cream?

I'm really nervous and need a bit of good experience stories from people (if possible....)

I’ve always had eczema and always had to use steroid ointments or creams, I’m now 61, I actually use a cream which is a lot stronger than the 1% so what you have is one of the steroid creams with the smallest amount of steroid. Eczema is a horrible thing to have, people say ‘oh it doesn’t look too bad’ but having it is more about how it makes your skin feel, hot, itchy, irritated.. the feeling makes you feel awful, people with eczema tend to be really down when it’s bad, as it’s on your mind all the time. Don’t worry about the use of the cream, hope it helps. Ask to see a skin specialist too as GPs really don’t know a lot about skin complaints.

Thank you so much 💓 I forgot to add it's for my 5 month old but his eczema is really severe now. As you say, he is absolutely in agony and screaming most days with it - even when it doesn't look too bad, he's still really upset. We have been through nearly every single cream we can and had allergy tests for milk and nothing

Hi

We got a steroid cream for my child afew months ago, it's made a massive difference!

Better to use early, keep applying until completely settled. Worst thing is being scared of using steroid cream, and the area gets more and more inflammed and get secondary infection, then you need to use antibiotics on top of it.

Steroids are not evil, it is there for use.

It is about finding out what causes ‘flares’, a dermatologist told me to use Persil non biological soap powder, so that’s what I have always used, which helps, avoiding perfumes, only using cotton fabrics, it’s all a bit hit and miss to work it all out. I can only use Head and Shoulders for hair washing, avoid all bubble bath, using Aveeno for bathing. Good luck with your little one, it gets easier as they get older as they can tell you if something irritates their skin. All my kids skipped having eczema but my granddaughter gets it, she knows what irritates her skin now. 🙂

Spot on!

We use Eumovate m, have done since he was 6 months old, and he’s been pretty much clear apart from an occasional rice grain sized spot since he was 18months. We used it every single day for 2 months solid - only a smear not a fingertip measurement, and this was under the supervision of his dermatologist. The worst thing that happened as a result of this was that his eczema cleared up - no bad effects at all. He was covered too, from thick scales on his scalp, to wet raw legs. It was awful and Eumovate was a miracle cure (along with lots of aveeno and some medicated shampoos). His skin is lovely now. Hope you find the same xx

A steroid cream is useful as a last resort. I am a life-long sufferer and would suggest that you avoid soap completely as much as possible. I find that epsom salt baths are the best thing to keep mine at bay and avoid flare-ups.

My DS suffered from exzema when he was young ( as did I ) - he had a mild steroid cream & it worked it a treat. Now he is older he has grown out of it. I had to have some when I was a teenager ( older than him ) Both of us are fine. It's a really horrid thing to go through so I would definitely give a very low dose cream a go.

Also & I suspect I am telling everyone what they already know - steroids I believe are used in so many things in small doses - I had to have steroid tablets for another completely unrelatedly complaint - the way the consultant described it to me is there are certain things ( I think he mentioned asthma ) where the medication contains some steroids - but not of the roid rage wrestling variety.

All best to you @Laurappo

They were a God send to us.

We kept being given different moisturisers for my DS's (5 months) severe eczema and they did naff all.

We eventually saw a dermatologist who prescribed strobg steroids and they were amazing. Cleared up his eczema in a few days and we then tapered off and used as needed. I cried with the relief.

Just a heads up, severe eczema is associated with an increased chance of food allergies so its really important to never touch the broken skin with hands that may have food on them. So wash hands before applying cream or touching baby. You should also consider early weaning and expose him to the top allergens (like nuts and sesame and egg) early. Try to ensure the food goes in the mouth rather than the skin and you can put some moisture around the mouth before food time to form a "barrier".

I wish we were told this. No idea if food particles on the skin was the cause, but DS has many severe food allergies (he's almost 3 now).

We used it on our baby at about the same age. Her eczema had been misdiagnosed as ringworm by the pharmacist so had got really bad (the treatment for ringworm exacerbates eczema apparently). It sounds quite similar to your baby - she was screaming whenever it was touched and awake half the night with it. The steroid cream worked a treat. We only needed to use it for a week or two and the eczema disappeared, never to return (apart from one or two minor flare ups which we've since treated with the same cream and have gone within days). I think there's a lot of misconceptions about steroid cream - it's not the same kind of steroids that bodybuilders use, for example! I think the real risks come in when steroids are used at high concentrations for very severe skin conditions for a long time. As a PP said, what you've been given is very low strength and won't harm your baby if you use it as directed. I hope it works as well for you as it did for us. We also moisturised baby a LOT (like 3-4 times a day, we used aveeno), stopped using fabric conditioner, and for a while I used super sensitive fragrance free washing powder. However I'm pretty sure it was the steroid cream that made the difference - I've since gone back to cheap'n'cheerful own brand wash powder and the eczema hasn't returned. We don't even moisturise her now unless her skin seems dry.

Mrs Rigmarole is right. A hydrocortical steroid like your 1% skin cream is quite different from an anabolic steroid like the bodybuilders use. So please don't Google "steroid" and worry about the results!

Eumovate and the like are pretty mild and a doctor once told me that as long as it's used as directed, the only side effect might be a slight thinning of the skin.

Sunlight helped my DCs' eczema but you won't get much of that if you're in the UK...

Hope your baby feels better soon

It was brilliant for us. DS still had cradle cap at 1 and a half and the health visitor wouldn't take us seriously about it. Tried everything and nothing worked. Bumped into a friend that is a dermatologist who said he needed to be seen as it could lead to him being bald if it was left as it was. We were prescribed steroid cream and it cleared up really really quickly and we've not needed to use it again (still use a medicated shampoo)

I've used steroid creams for my eczema all my life (I'm in my 50s now), and would have a miserable time if I didn't have a selection to use when I get the occasional flare-up! They can work so well in calming in the inflammation, letting the skin heal. My children needed them too, as babies, and it worked brilliantly. Eczema is a miserable condition when it is flaring up, so if the GP has prescribed it, do use it and don't worry. And if it doesn't help, you may need a referral to a dermatologist, who will have a wider array of creams and treatments at their disposal. Good luck!

They don’t tell you this at doctors but never apply steroid directly onto unmoisturised skin.

• First, do an emollient bath in warm but not too hot water.
• Apply emollient or moisturiser within 3 mins of getting out of bath (otherwise you lose the benefit of bath as water evaporates)
• Then apply steroid very sparingly to skin.

(You can apply on top of moisturised skin without the bath, but with bath is better)

Throughout day keep applying moisturiser. I swear by Child’s farm unscented. You really can’t over apply moisturiser. When mine gets bad I moisturise nearly every hour for a couple of days and that makes a huge difference. Probably slightly harder to keep doing it with a child.

Thank you all so much. The Internet is full of horror stories about steroid creams but I am in tears most days. He is literally hysterical daily and I just don't know anymore to help him. Changed all washing powders, tried all creams etc.

It's really nice and makes me feel more positive hearing positive experiences ❤️
Fingers crossed it gives him some peace

My DD (now 3) has had 1% steroid cream for her eczema since she was a baby. She's fine. It's fine. It really helps get on top of it when the skin is cracked and bleeding. But we try to keep it at bay pre-emptively with loads of Diprobase.

Yes, our DD has suffered with eczema from around 3 months old (now 2.5yo). We use steroid creams on and off, her flare ups tend to be worse in the warmer months I think due to suncream etc. But her hands are bad all year round. Usually use a hydrocortisone but the GP prescribed a stronger steroid (eumovate) earlier this year for the really angry patches. We use it for a few days until it clears and it really works so quickly, then the hydrocortisone to try and keep it at bay and for the other milder patches. Also moisturise with epimax morning & night, and other less greasy ones in between when we remember to.

I booked another appt a few weeks ago as I had concerns, thinning the skin over time etc. The GP said that the benefits of her not suffering with the eczema and risking is getting so bad it gets infected, will far outweigh the risks.

They also recommended a dose of piriton before bed when she has a bad flare up, as it can help calm the itching overnight and reduce any subconscious scratching.

Just really hoping she's one of the lucky ones that grows out of it. The other children who have suffered with it on my side of the family all have so I'm keeping everything crossed!

Also be wary of moisturiser ingredients. I had bad eczema as a child and was prescribed E45 for years, with my skin getting worse and worse despite strong steroids.
It was only as a young teen that I worked out through trial and error that I was allergic to lanolin, which is in E45 and I think several other moisturisers. The other thing that helped was swimming regularly, I think the chlorine was keeping skin bacteria at bay. Though I know chlorine makes it worse for some people.

I suffered from very severe eczema as a child which unfortunately in my case persisted into adulthood though not as bad and has cleared up a lot since my late twenties. I had to use steroid creams a lot as a child and I have had some side effects - thinning of the skin and white patches on areas where it was most frequently used. But I also suffered with some terrible infections when the skin became too damaged so I really do think steroid cream have their place and you shouldn't worry about using them sparingly and for short periods of time. The main thing for me has been to moisturise loads, several times a day (Aveeno has been great for me) and to identify triggers then take care to avoid them. For me the main triggers are pet hair, dust, changes in temperature like going from cold outside to warm inside (hard to avoid that one!), getting hot and sweaty. Like PP I also figured out I am allergic to lanolin so E45 made it worse. I've used Epaderm ointment on DS when he's had a little eczema and used it several times a day, worked well for him. It's all a bit trial and error unfortunately.

All depends what type of moisturiser, I’m allergic to loads of different types of moisturisers, so doing your suggestion would be counter productive, putting on an irritant and then a steroid on top would not help at all

I had horrible eczema as a child, my skin would be raw and weeping. My mum didn't want to use steroids (it was the 80s so much less information around) so tried every possible cream to try to fix it. I remember calendula cream being particularly popular with her. Nothing worked. When I was around 10 she relented and I tried a steroid cream. I haven't really had eczema since (now 41). If I get a bit of a flare up I use steroid cream and it's gone the next day.

My son got eczema when he was around five months old. Just like mine. Treated it with steroid cream, gone. It does flare up more than mine (it's often worse in childhood) but it's easily treated. Just go for it, they're really no big deal so long as you're sensible.

We’ll yes, don’t use a moisturiser / emollient that you’re allergic too. But you really shouldn’t put steroid straight onto skin that doesn’t have a base on it first. Sadly it can be trial and error to find one you can tolerate.

From emollients I used to like diprobase as one that didn’t cause me issues but everyone is different.

I’ve had to use it on and off for 4 decades, including the v thin skin around my eyes occasionally. I have very few wrinkles and good skin,

You have to be careful with it, but it doesn’t burn layers off your skin and some people seem to think.

@Shortpoet

Well this is not NHS advice, which says to give it 20 mins after applying a steroid before applying eczema.

It’s not that applying a barrier moisturiser before is going to do you any harm, but it will weaken the steroid and make it less effective - and really you should be using the strength your doctor prescribed.