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Exzema Treatment


TraciWA
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Help! My three year old has what the doctor says is exzema. It starts on his hands goes up his arms. It is also on his face and chest/neck area. It is itchy and he is scratching it raw. How do I treat this? Do you think I should get him tested for a food allergy. None of my others had anything like this.

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The doctor diagnosed it but gave you no treatment or advice???? Are you in place where you are using heating? Exzema often occurs more in winter. You need to use heavy duty moisturizers, not bathe daily, and you may need to use antihistamines to stop itching at night. One of mine had it so bad she needed to be put on a prescription antihistamine (stronger than benadryl but a kind that also caused sleepiness). I think that for some of the worse areas, we were given prescription hydrocortisone cream to treat but you can't do that on large areas.

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For my son, hydrocortisone cream helps with the itching and the redness, and daily application of Aveeno Soothing Relief Moisture Cream (not any of the other baby ones, or the eczema one) help keep his eczema under control. My own eczema is a reaction to fragrances, so I have to use all fragrance-free products (detergent, body wash, shampoo, etc.). I also use all fragrance-free products for my son, as well.

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It is an allergic reaction. Wheat, corn, milk and pets (dander and/or saliva) are very common allergies that can present with eczema.

 

There are many studies that show an allergy to dust mites (their excrement) is strongly tied to pediatric eczema.

 

My sister used the 'eastern medicine' NAET and had her son 'cleared' for several allergic substances. He has been so much better-- amazingly better (I ALMOST believe that NAET actually works...) but it is something to consider. Her son was head to toe with a TERRIBLE case of eczema and how he only has a few patches on occasion.

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It can certainly be related to allergies or reactions. Tracking them down can be hard. A friend's daughter reacts to grass pollen. I react to something in almost all soaps and have to really watch products I use. I carry a safe soap (California Baby Super Sensitive) with me actually as I'll have an immediate severe reaction just washing my hands with other soaps. A friend's son was reacting to Balsam of Peru and it's related substances. It's a fragrance that is tons of products using different names and it cross reacts with several foods too. My son has eczema related to general atopic issues but he also reacts to various products. He avoids his food allergies but he has environmental allergies that you just can't completely eliminate. He takes Zyrtec. I think I would expect to see food related eczema more widespread. But, yes, he may be reacting to something.

 

Generally, make sure water can't evaporate off his skin. He has to dry, and dry completely, any time his skin gets wet. That will make a huge difference. Find a lotion/cream that works for him. That can be very variable. Neutrogena Norwegean cream works great for me yet it makes my son worse. My husband likes calendula cream but both my son and I react horribly to it. My son does fine with Vanicream, though it's not quite enough to keep the eczema away. I'm trying Waxalene now with him and so far it's helping better than others we've tried with no reactions. We do cream whenever he's taken a shower (right after drying off), when he goes to bed, and sometimes when he wakes too. I just use my cream when things act up and, as long as I avoid bad for me soaps and dry well, I rarely need it. My husband has hand eczema and has to use cream pretty regularly in the winter. He moisturizes after washing his hands and then a heavier one before bed. He's not reactive to things so he has used a wide variety of stuff I think.

 

Staph can be a part of pediatric (and adult) eczema and you might do some googling to see if it might be a factor for your son.

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The triggers will vary by individual. For us, Aveeno was not going to work due to an oat allergy but as long as there is no allergy to the ingredients, it is a nice option. Be aware that a lot of natural skin care (and regular options) will have ingredients that can irritate eczema.

 

Dairy is not an issue for us, but for some people it can be a huge trigger. Our biggest one was whole wheat. One of my kids has never had eczema again since we took it out of the diet. I also get it from exposure to certain environmental allergens.

 

But it really doesn't matter what triggers it for anyone else unless you want to start by eliminating the most common ones to see if it helps.

 

I really think allergy testing is valuable because it would have saved us a lot of time and tears if we'd just done it in the beginning. But you need to find an allergist that gives more help than so many I hear about on the boards. I must be spoiled by a really great allergist because people post questions here that I never had to ask after an appointment. We were lucky to find one that has done a lot to help us and was very good at predicting what we needed to test.

 

Hope you figure out what works for your son!

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The doctor diagnosed it but gave you no treatment or advice???? Are you in place where you are using heating? Exzema often occurs more in winter. You need to use heavy duty moisturizers, not bathe daily, and you may need to use antihistamines to stop itching at night. One of mine had it so bad she needed to be put on a prescription antihistamine (stronger than benadryl but a kind that also caused sleepiness). I think that for some of the worse areas, we were given prescription hydrocortisone cream to treat but you can't do that on large areas.

 

Pretty much just said put moisturizer on it. We live in the Pacific Northwest so up till now the heater has been going full blast. My oldest dd had it on his face as an infant and I remember it going away in the summer but he only had it a couple years.

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For my son, hydrocortisone cream helps with the itching and the redness, and daily application of Aveeno Soothing Relief Moisture Cream (not any of the other baby ones, or the eczema one) help keep his eczema under control. My own eczema is a reaction to fragrances, so I have to use all fragrance-free products (detergent, body wash, shampoo, etc.). I also use all fragrance-free products for my son, as well.

 

Thanks I am writing the cream name down so I don't forget it.

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Thanks all for the advice! He does have extremely dry skin and I only bathe him about twice a week. I have a wheat intolerance so maybe I will start with that. I will look into an allergist. We took our oldest for testing when he was five and it was torture for him so no looking forward to that!

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Don't forget detergents, soaps, shampoos, and fabric softeners can all trigger eczema. I have to use a "Free and Clear" detergent, and only the blue cap Aveeno baby wash for DD, even now at almost 6.

 

DD and DH both have to wear mostly, if not 100%, cotton next to their skin or they get rashes. For real. I'll never forget the night DD toddled into my room crying in her new sleeper (pre washed in our detergent). Her torso was bright red and itchy. I checked the tag - polyester. I don't know why I hadn't looked in the store, but it never went on her again after I jerked it off her!

 

For lotion, DD uses Triple Cream.

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Elidel. Expensive but worth it!

 

 

I thought a while back there was good reason to jump ship on Elidel (sp?)? Cancer links? Something...

 

Our best Rx was triamcinalone. However, as mentioned up thread, you can't really treat a wide area with cortisone.

 

As far as allergy testing, I think at age three there's no guarantee you'd get an accurate result. Better to try an elimination diet. I'd start with dairy as that is a common cause of reaction. As someone else has pointed out, each individual has his own trigger. For us, ragweed, melon in ragweed season, and fragrance in laundry detergents are the main culprits.

 

Eczema is in the "allergic triangle" along with asthma and rhinitis, if I remember correctly. An antihistamine may be very helpful. Be sure to use fragrance free detergent for your laundry, and not let your little one sit in a bathtub of soapy water. Switch to Cetaphil for bathing. And you have already received tons of good advice on moisturizing.

 

When mine were that age, I would dress them in light cotton clothing that covered the most easily irritated parts o the skin (for mine it was their legs). That helped keep them from scratching. And trim those fingernails short and do it often!

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Your doctor sounds like our pediatrician. I ended up taking my son to an allergist because I wasn't happy with "It's eczema, just get some good lotion." We found out he what his allergies were, which is helpful in avoiding things that will trigger it.

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My youngest has very bad eczema. She's had it since she was a tiny baby and exclusively breastfed. We were putting steroids on her since she was about 1yr and doing all the typical things like lots of lotions, fewer and shorter baths, and no bubbles. I even cooked up my own lotion because I wasn't happy with the results of anything. She got much worse when she was about 3. Her eczema was everywhere, bleeding, skin falling off- it was awful.

 

I finally convinced the doctor to get her tested and she has an uncommon food allergy. I never would have suspected it. I think she was so bad because she had been eating a lot of that food whereas before she hadn't had as much and I didn't eat a lot of it while breastfeeding. It is upsetting that I had to push the dermatologist to refer her to the allergist. The dermatologist wanted to put her through light therapy 3 times a week without bothering to test for allergies! We live in an area with hard water now and the dermatologist also suggested installing a water softener before testing for allergies.

 

Even when she completely avoids the allergen, however, she still has eczema patches/sensitive skin. It's tricky. I would definitely do allergy testing but it might not be a complete cure. My daughter's skin has cleared up enough that light therapy is no longer being discussed and we can usually keep it under control using steroids on only 1-2 spots at a time. Before, we were putting it on 90% of her body almost every day!

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My oldest (20 years old) has always had excema. When he was little we tried everything before a doctor suggested allergies. He is allergic to various foods, but his worst reaction is to acid foods (and he loves ketchup). His holistic doctor suggested borage oil (as a supplement), it works wonders for him. Even now if he doesn't take it for a while his excema flares up, but if he takes it he can even it ketchup with little consequence.

Maybe this would help someone. I just remember feeling so helpless when he was little and nothing worked.

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My ds is allergic to polyester, and that is his trigger. It is so hard to pin down the trigger. While you search look for a good lotion. Be aware that some lotions can trigger it too. My ds is allergic to aquaphor, yep, the lotion the doc suggests for eczema. Our pedi does not like most meds to treat it, because some topicals a like Elidel have black box warnings that state it could cause leukemia. We have already dealt with leukemia, so we do not want to go there again.

 

It is frustrating, but once you figure out the trigger it does get easier to deal with.

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DS11's eczema was caused by detergent, primarily laundry detergent. I just had a hunch one day and dump everything fabric into a mountainous pile on the floor and "washed" all of it without soap. Then I switched to liquid All Free and Clear with a double rinse for every load. That got rid of almost all of it for him. He had a patch on each foot that wouldn't go away. I treated it with Neosporin until it went away. (A friend's father was a dermatologist and mentioned to me that eczema often has a bacterial component to it and talked about needing to treat people with topical and oral antibiotics. That's where I got the idea of using Neosporin on those patches.)

 

Anyway, figuring out DS's trigger helped me figure out why I was so itchy/fidgety all the time (no visible eczema) and why I frequently had rough, inflamed patches on my cheeks and gums. I'm apparently allergic to sodium lauryl sulfate, which is in laundry detergent, soap (glycerine and homemade soaps are ok), shampoo, and toothpaste. Finding products without it is challenging but they are out there. I personally would start with the detergents and soaps.

 

I hope you find the trigger. Being that itchy isn't fun.

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I had eczema as a child, a few sporadic episodes on my fingers as an adult, and then in the last year quite a bit of it (eczema or some similar dermatitis) on my neck and face. The dermatologist said the next step would be allergy testing, but for now I'm just trying to manage it. I have prescription triamcinolone for my hand (used very occasionally when it flares up) and prescription desonide for my neck (use a couple of times a week when it's particularly itchy). I don't want to use steroids on my face but have permission to use OTC hydrocortisone when it's flaring badly. I can usually manage it on my face okay with Eucerin cream and/or vaseline petroleum jelly.

 

Our paper had an article within the last 6 months on some research done at OSU that showed that there is a genetic component to eczema where the body I think is missing a protein or something that helps the skin with its barrier protection function. I feel like I'm adding that barrier back particularly with the vaseline. Feels good. Good luck on finding a regimen to help your son.

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Han Solo has it. It's worse in the winter, but we use hydrocortisone and aquafor lotion. He doesn't scratch at all though, so that's good. He had a milk allergy, but the ped wanted me to start adding a little milk in his diet to see how he tolerated it. He loves cottage cheese, but his eczema got worse almost immediately after he started eating it. I stopped giving it to him and the eczema has calmed down. I'll try it again once spring arrives (if it ever does!) and we don't have to have our heaters blasting.

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