I finally succumbed and took the baby into the doctor about his face rash. I had tried everything and nothing was even making a dent. We switched formulas, tried lotions, oils, more and less baths, etc. But by Tuesday, one side of his face was just raw. It was gut wrenching to look at. So I broke down and called the doctor.
Turns out, Little Man has a very severe case of eczema. And it's very itchy, apparently. (poor, poor baby!) He has been suffering from this horrible itchy rash for weeks now! And I thought it was just baby acne. (Could I smack my own hands with a rod?) I feel just terrible about it.
The doctor recommended I slather his face with... vaseline. (I know- ewwww) Now he's got a slimey head. After a couple days of doing this, I saw a dramatic difference, though- like night and day. I really hope this clears up before Sunday so I can skip a day of vaselining my son's head and dress him up all handsome to show him off.
I found some rather unorthodox ideas for treating eczema and thought I'd share those as well:
- A study published in the May 2009 issue of Pediatrics tested treatments on kids with eczema ages 6 months to 17 years. They found that soaking for five to ten minutes twice a week in a diluted bleach bath (1/2 cup bleach per full standard-size tub) was five times more effective at treating eczema than plain water (used by the placebo group). The improvement was so dramatic that researchers stopped the study early to allow children in the placebo group to get relief with the method. (this tops the list of the weirdest things I've found to treat eczema)
- Many experts now believe that daily bathing can be helpful for babies with eczema. Just don't make the water too warm, because very warm water dries out the skin faster than lukewarm water.
- "I recommend emollients for children of all ages," says Michael Smith, associate professor of medicine and pediatrics in the division of dermatology at Vanderbilt Medical Center in Nashville. Smith suggests trying an emollient for a short period of time to see whether it makes a difference and continuing it if it does. (Aquaphor and Cetaphil are emollients or anything with the ingredients: ceramides, glycerol, urea and lactic acid)
So of course, I will be trying all of those. (except the bleach soak, because he's too young for that) And probably spending the farm on whatever is labeled both "baby" and "eczema." Anyone have any inside-secret-treatments?
Alyssa has eczema, too. Poor kids! I asked my doc about the bleach bath once, and she balked and said she had never heard of it and thought it would be too irritating for the skin. I tried it, though, and it totally helped. It's pretty sad when we know more than the doctors, eh? :)
ReplyDeleteHailyn had bad ecezma too- the doc told us 2-3 baths a week tops and not to use soap other times- the only thing that worked for Hailyn was Eucerin cream (the tub that costs like $16- lucky equate brand was the exact same thing and was $7) still! cetaphil worked well too- I never heard of the bleach bath- sounds scary but if it works it works (I'm with you I'd wait til he was older!)
ReplyDeletei have a buddy that did this for her daughter, and she said it made a huge difference--chagrin valley soaps, www.chagrinvalleysoapandcraft.com
ReplyDelete, they are all natural soaps and whatnot, anyway, they have one that's called castule and calendula soap, which is a soap made from olive oil and is their gentlest soap, and the bath melts (which you can use in the shower or in the bath and also come in a ginormous bar). i hope something works soon! it can also be diet related, like milk when jonni was a baby would set off eczema. good luck!
gah! that was liz, not john!!
ReplyDeleteWe, too, have battled eczema. Aveeno makes a great lotion that is extra thick for eczema. Aquaphor and Bag Balm were other favorites. Poor little, Gavin!
ReplyDeleteAndrew has eczema...we use Cetaphil...the tub lotion. It creates a water barrier for his skin. When he has really angry and flared up areas we do use some steroid cream...over the counter. We tried the Eucerin cream and the Equate brand and it did not work for us. Cetaphil is a bit expensive but you can get a 12 oz tub for the same price at Sam's.
ReplyDeleteA few of my kids have struggled with eczema off and on. I can't believe your doctor didn't give you a prescription. There is a prescription cream called Elocon. It is a hydro-cortisone based creme made especially for eczema and I swear clears it up on contact. Poor little man. I also use the Eucerin cream (not the lotion; the CREAM) and it helps alot to keep it from flaring up as quickly.
ReplyDelete