Nappy rash patch won't go away, it's been three months, any more ideas?

[BellaBear]

DS has had a patch of nappy rash at the top of his leg since he was six months old and started teething. It has been there for three motnhs, getting better and worse but never going away. Now it seems to have little red patches within the rash patch and looks much angrier.

So far we have tried:

• only using cloth (possibly got a little worse)
• not using cloth (for three weeks)(no difference)
• sudocrem (little difference)
• bepanthen (some difference, but it didn't last
• metanium on advice of GP who thought another patch might be thrush - the thrush seems to have cleared up, the angry patch has now got worse
• not using wipes, using cotton wool (can't see any difference)

He really scratches at himself when he doesn't have a nappy which curtails nappy free time somewhat - despite cutting his nails often, he has actually broken skin by scratching

Any more ideas?

that picture looks worrying like ds's rash

I'll bet gps hate it when patients turn up having seen something on the internet

will book appointment, AND try camomile/honey liners

and treat nappies

thank you so much cargirl - first time i've heard of it. will have a proper read hopefully soon when dd is asleep [currently being bf and faffing about with it] x

If it is just nappy rash the best thing ever is "sprilon" which is the brand name for a bed sore spray it leave a thin coat of dimethicone (or something similar) so the skin still breathes but the sores are protected from wee/poo I've had it on pescription before.

I would just say it's been going on for 3 months I would like a swab done just to rule out anything unexpected.

thanks!

Update:

he's on antibiotics for an ear infection (and has perked up immeasurably (sp?)

GP said rash isn't strep A, too dry to take a swab, could be eczema(sp again!), proscribed aqueous cream, so we'll see

Have you tried washing his nappy area with warm soapy water using a flannel, drying thoroughly, and slapping on a liberal application of zinc and castor oil cream?

HI Queenbee

Wondering how your little one is. My daughter has had a fungal nappy rash for 4 months and she does not respond to medicated creams and it appears the sugar in the thrush medication makes it worse. She is constantly sore and uncomfortable. We are at the GP's every week however nothing is done. They won't do a culture either. She did have a urine test for diabetes but came out negative. Very frustrating. Wondered if anything worked for you.

Bella Bear : I'm Late to this thread - but as a health prof [please forget this fact as soon as I leave this thread. Mostly I'm a knackered mum and hormonal pregnant whale ] I'd say defo defo defo stop using the baby wipes - going back up to your origional posting.

When they were first marketed they were marketed as use and wash off and dry. The product was not intended to be left on the skin when the babywipe idea was born.

The ideas above about the tea are brill. The honey too - you can just smear it on. Sticky bliss. Manuka deffo, or local if you have any little small holding type enterprise that have bee's. These ideas aply to any type of nappy use.

We did this to make using the tea as easy as wipes for us all:
Make chamomile tea, leave a cereal size bowl of it anywhere you change babba, and put some in a little bottle or a travel spray thing to take out. Use it as water with cotton wool or a bit of soft anything, sheet, pillow case torn up, fleece, anything
Dry area and be nappyless any time this is possible, including house, carseat, pushchair etc. Creative use of pampers bed time dry sheet things!! Look to have most of day without a nappy.

This is hardcore fresh air treatment!!

Get it swabbed by the Gp or Health Visitor - simply ask them to do it, listen to their opinions and ideas, then ask them to do it again. Keep repeating this until its done - and I mean in one consultation. Don't find yourself leaving with another idea to try - get the swab and another idea! Then you will either get a diagnosis and correct treatment [will take about 4 days to get the smaple grown in labs] or get no growth. If there is a lurgy still keep up the soothing chamomile, but the correct treatment will nail the bug quickly. Any cleaning 'product' will strip off oil and healing balm your ds has made, open tiny cracks where scabs are forming invisably and mean the bug just gets to start again. Even water, but chamomile should help the skin to sort of back off it's inflamatory response. They have to have the urine cleaned off afterall!!

Go when it's flared, so there is a good chance of catching a sample of any bug. Use any appointment you have to, emergency, HV, midwife, nurse - anyone can swab. You could even plan in advance - ask Gp to talk you through collecting a swab and do it yourself during a flare up.

If there is no lurgy, it's about management of what may be an ongoing battle you have to wage war on. For me, the fact that these things go when potty trained shows it's to do with freash air and intolerence to 'cleaning', however its done.

Sorry to drone! I have experience of this and this was how it panned out for us!! Got a soapbox as big as my dd1!! We ended up bathing her once a month only {as per several bits of research suggest, royal college of dermatologists back this so I'm not just lazy They reckon move to weekly when crawling ]

tcarter - did GP say what made them think it is fungal?

Thanks Treedelivery. They said the nappy fungal rash started as thrush which she has been treated for several times however the recent thrush medication had a high amount of sucrose in it which seems to make it worse. We have for the past several weeks not made it out of the house because we have her bum exposed all day and sometimes at night. She is hardly wearing a diaper but the situation has actually gotten worse recently. I am going to the doctor's again today and asking for a culture to be done. I will try the camomile tea on her bottom when I change her. Lately we have been using just water and cotton wool. We try to prevent her from scratching but she still does it and her poor bottom bleeds and the sores and blisters open. The doctor's are saying it is only contact dermatitis but usually that responds to home treatments like having a nappy free environment and medicated creams. She becomes especially distressed at night time and early morning. It is very red and sore and is now spreading up her back. She does have mild eczema which dry skin often is associated with rashes but this is something I have never seen before. I wish I could do more. When the blisters break it is watery but no real pus comes out. IT is especially bad around her sphinter and it is yellow/brown and crusty like there.

Oh forgot to say we have been using barriers creams with zinc oxide and even homeopathic remedies. Nothing is working on my little girl. regarding what I have tried so far.

Thanks Cargirl for the website on perianal streptococcus dermititis. My daughter's nappy rash looks similar to the one shown. Will follow up with GP.

Tcarter - oooo poor lttle mite!! I'd be in one big bad mood if that were my bum!

Sounds like it's really dictating your days. Our dd's constipation did that, amazing what we just get used to and put up with.

I really hope the GP swabbed and you can at least have a definitive diagnosis.

my ds had quite a nasty rash while in disposables, nothing would completely clear it, my mum suggested a couple of drops of lavender oil in the bath every day and washing the area with cotton wool dipped in warm ater with a couple of drops of tea tree oil at every change. i also used aloe vera vaseline to act as a barrier, it cleared up amazingly fast. u can also get aloe vera gels but i havent tried any of them for this purpose, i only know that when i myself had thrush, the aloe vera gel soothed it far better than prescribed cream. i really do feel for you as i know what that feels like to not be able to help them.

Just scanning through comments so appologise if this has already been recommended, my sister and I used Lucas Pawpaw ointment, mil from new zealand sweared by it and it's brilliant for nappy rash, excema even chapped lips! It's from australia but can be bought over internet and it's a natural cream using the fermented fruit of papaya. Hope thats of some help and hope the little one feels better soon.

we also use burts busy bees nappy cream and also the bath oil when particularly bsd tho i have to say your los experience sounds dreadful def sounds as if its a swab and grumpy face oment to get sorted once and for all

have you tried the antiseptic bepanthen or morhulin?

treedelivery - oooh would be interested if you could possibly forward or link to the research about only bathing once a month then weekly.

Havent read all posts but my friend swears by whisked egg whites, just one egg white whisked to the consistency that you would mae meringue with, put a small dollop in DC's nappy.

the egg white can be stored in the fringe covered over for a day or two

Ok, I discovered the answer to this - dd had the same thing at the top of her leg from about 2 weeks old until we went to France when she was 8 mths old (awful and made her generally miserable). A French pharmacist took one look and gave us a tube of Mytosil - it worked within a few days and we haven't looked back, it has changed our lives! Happy baby no more rash. You just need to find someone in France to send you a tube.

Nappyaddict - am searching journals for the artical I read. SOOooooo frustrating I can remember the page and everthing. Will keep hunting and pass it on with references.

HAve looked at royal college of midwives research based articles - they seem to go with bathing for less than 5 mins in plain water twice a week for a newborn.

oh i hate it when i know i've seen stuff and can't find it later on. thanks for looking though.

Arghh! I can even remember tha page layout and everything.

tut

Thanks everyone for your suggestions. We are following several of them. We finally had the doctor take a swab of my daughter's rash. As it turns out she has seborrohic dermatitis on her bottom (the same thing as cradle cap) but she has a particularly severe case of it. Although we are still awaiting the swab results. The doctor gave us a hydrocortizone cream which has started to help but has not gotten rid of it completed. At least my daughter is no longer screaming and saying she is sore constantly. I felt so bad for her. Supposedly this condition gets better with age.

Well, at least you have a diagnosis and can start looking into management of that. Hopefully cream will get on top of it and your dd's immune system will calm down and you can sta on top of it.

Thats how it seems to work for my dd sores on her legs.

Poor little thing, it must have been so sore It's great to have a battle plan.

I give dd calpol and anti histamine syrup when it all goes Wrong. Slightly other end of spectrum to our usual policy of no toxins. Hey Ho it cheers her up!

Let us know swab result.