By mac on Wednesday, June 09, 2010 - 02:51 pm:

Know more about Eczema and how to manage the eczema and its treatment at medicurehelp.com

By caron on Saturday, April 24, 2010 - 10:18 pm:

my poor daughter has eczema all over controlled everynow and then found a pharmasist that has made a cream up that mixes a low dosage of steroid and emulsifying ointment with a antihestimin etc that is fab he is in dungarvan in ireland we started using it last week it worked then within a few days my girl jessica came out in wat looked like a very bad dose of chicken pox but we thought not chicken pox as she had been in the doctors last year and was told she had chicken pox then little did we now here we go again very rare to happen but she has caught them again my poor doll isnt itchy with them but omg is she sore it isnt fair that she has to go thru it again aswell as having eczema i know there are kids out there who have worse problems but my stomach is sick and wish it would hurry up and go away for her not a mind the worrying as catching it again can have complications in itself..

By mugglemama on Tuesday, October 14, 2008 - 07:07 pm:

i don't know if this will help anyone, but i just wanted to give an overview of our experience with eczema.

my daughter flared up with eczema when she was 2.5 years old. for more than a year, we struggled with it...she had it from head to toe, and we just could not figure out what it was from. we also couldn't find anything that seemed to give her relief from it. we seriously altered her diet for 5 months, and that did seem to help, but only a little.

when she flared up, we were new residents of arizona. we had moved there 9 months earlier from southern california. she had never had eczema before that time.

after being in arizona for 2 years, we were preparing to relocate to boise, idaho. about a month before the move, i ordered Free Derm online to see if it would work at all. at this point i just wanted any amount of relief i could give her.

the Free Derm worked dramatically, and immediately. however, she would continue to flare, it's just that the Free Derm was helping to calm the flares.

but when we moved to Idaho a few weeks later, her eczema literally disappeared. i mean, immediately. it was just gone, as quickly as it had arrived more than a year earlier.

so obviously, we've come to the conclusion that there was something about the climate or house we were in while living in arizona (the dust, heat, water....something) that was causing her eczema.

she has very mild flare ups once in a while (but just very tiny patches on the inside of her elbows), and the Free Derm knocks them out right away. other than that, we are eczema free.

for those who have children with chronic and severe eczema, is there any way that you can plan an extended stay in a different climate to see if it affects your child's skin positively? maybe go stay with a relative or friend who lives somewhere else for a couple of weeks? it may sound drastic to some, but we all know how much eczema can rule our lives and if a move to another area would solve the problem, i imagine there are many parents who would gladly take advantage of that option, if it was effective.

good luck to everyone!!

By Lucy J on Tuesday, May 30, 2006 - 09:53 am:

oh my god!my son of 5 has chicken pox and hes pickled,just taken him back to docs and hes now infected.We've been trying a drug called Cyclosporin as his eczema is that bad,and after 3weeks his skin is clear for the first time in almost 6 years then he gets the pox!Don't you think my son has suffered enough?Why is life so cruel?

By Vic on Monday, April 18, 2005 - 10:13 pm:

Eczema isn't the only reason to avoid McDonalds. That stuff is filthy slurry. I can't think of a situation in which I'd let my son eat anything of theirs. Off topic I know.

By Cora on Thursday, April 14, 2005 - 10:20 pm:

Hi Vic. I would never order steroids on the internet without proper presciption. In fact, I'd rather purchase it from my local pharmacy and recommend that all parents do the same.

Vic, my poor son broke out in E all over his head, belly, eyes, ears, arms and hands and knees. It's our fault. We fed him McDonald's chicken select meal. It was quite good. Mon. he was all healed, now he looks like a cute little monster or zombie. So our wonderful dermatologist saw him immediately today and prescribed Triamcinolone 0.25 mg per gram and Keflex again. Poor little tyke. The steroid again, can be used safely for short term 2-3 weeks. It's much stronger than the hydrocordizone that he was previously on. I pray he heals up within a week. I'm going to have to be very diligent about what he eats. *sigh*

By Cora on Thursday, April 14, 2005 - 10:12 pm:

Hi Vic. I would never order steroids on the internet without proper presciption. In fact, I'd rather purchase it from my local pharmacy and recommend that all parents do the same.

Vic, my poor son broke out in E all over his head, belly, eyes, ears, arms and hands and knees. It's our fault. We fed him McDonald's chicken select meal. It was quite good. Mon. he was all healed, now he looks like a cute little monster or zombie. So our wonderful dermatologist saw him immediately today and prescribed Triamcinolone 0.25 mg per gram and Keflex again. Poor little tyke. The steroid again, can be used safely for short term 2-3 weeks. It's much stronger than the hydrocordizone that he was previously on. I pray he heals up within a week. I'm going to have to be very diligent about what he eats. *sigh*

By Vic on Monday, April 11, 2005 - 07:53 pm:

Hi Cora,

You sound incredibly sensible and thoughtful. I guess I was concerned about people ordering strong steroids over the internet and applying them to their babies, but I do know that in some situations, short term use is necessary.

By Cora on Friday, April 08, 2005 - 01:50 pm:

Hi Vic. We were very worried about using 2.5% Hydrocortizone on the baby's face and head too. It is mixed with a tub of Aquaphor so it is not full strength and it was prescribed by our son's dermatologist. The main thing is that it worked and it's used short term. The reason it was prescribed was because it can be used on broken skin. Elidel, Protopic, and other non-steroid creams can not be placed on broken skin. We were very stressed out that long term use of steroids will cause cataracts on my son's eyes or cause blindness. The dermatologist reassured me that it would not, especially with the low dosage of hydrocortizone. I'm currently pregnant and have eczema flare ups on my face and neck. I was told that it is very safe to place straight 2.5% hydrocortizone on it for only 2 weeks straight although I haven't done so. I worry for my developing fetus. Since my son is allergic to Elidel, we've been using Protopic on him but it is definitely painful on open wounds.

Our good friend's son did develop cataracts from long term use of steroids for his eczema at 4-12 years of age. He got cataracts in his 30's. But back then, dermatologists used to use higher strength steroids.

For anyone using steroids around your baby's eyes or face, use extreme caution and only as prescribed. Apply it only when the baby's in deep sleep so it does not get rubbed in the eyes.

Thank you Vic for bringing up the concern.

By Vic on Friday, April 08, 2005 - 12:10 pm:

Cora, I'm a bit concerned about the idea of using 2.5% hydrocortisone on a baby's face and head. I certainly would try everything else first. I agree with you about olive oil though. I think it's fine just for cradle cap, but if your baby has eczema, it just makes things worse (and they end up smelling like a salad bowl too). I never used shampoo on my boy, and still don't. We find just water works fine.

By Cora on Thursday, April 07, 2005 - 07:53 pm:

Notty, Vic gave you excellent advice. My son had eczema and cradle cap at 3 months. He is now 2 1/2 and loves rubbing and scratching his eyes and ears bloody (change in seasonal weather). The Aquaphor mixed with 2.5% Hydrocordizone cream cleared up his cradle cap and facial eczema. He still gets flare up but is looking much better. You need to constantly wash off the exudate from the cradle cap and eczema. Johnson's baby shampoo is very mild and my son has no reactions to it. I used to to wash him since infancy and has not used any other soaps since. I highly recommend Aveeno lotion for moisturizing as it's very mild, not greasy, and kids tend to tolerate it well. We are currently trying Protopic istead of the hydrocortizone creams but I think the hydrocortizone is faster acting to rid of any inflammations.

With the cradle cap, my son used to roll his head or scratch his face until he looked like a bloody mess. I'd have your baby's dermatologist prescribe antihistamines or use of Benadryl to give both of you some relief. I wish I had done that when my son was initially diagnosed with atopic dermatitis. Whatever you decide to do, do not put olive oil on the head. My son was allergic to olive oil (among other foods) and ended up with quarter sized hives on the head and face. I heard vegetable oil is ok. What the oil does is loosens up skin flakes from the scalp. I wish you lots of luck! *HUGS*

By Vic on Wednesday, April 06, 2005 - 08:49 pm:

Hi Notty, you don't say where in the world you are, but I'm UK based. These are the things we did which have helped us:

1. Stop using any soaps or baby ointments on your baby.
2. Go to your GP if UK based. Get a prescription for Epaderm. Apply like mad everywhere up to 6 times a day, see if it gets better. Use it in the bath (Be Careful it makes everything slippy). Epaderm is totally safe and non-steroidal. There are other creams too, like Doublebase, Hydromol, Balneum. Try them if the Epaderm isn't anygood on its own. We use 3 emollients at once!
3. If it doesn't get better, try a steroid based cream, discuss with your doctor and be careful.
4. Use only non-bio washing powder. Use a tiny bit only and try an extra rinse cycle to clear all of the powder out of your baby's clothes.
5. Try putting your baby in 100% cotton clothes only and cotton sheets.
6. Keep your house relatively cool
7. Vacuum regularly (daily if possible), with the baby out of the room. Air your house whenever possible. Keep dusty stuff to a minimum, and especially out of the room the baby sleeps in.
8. Wash sheets etc on 60%, keep dusty toys out of the bed. Put teddies in the freezer for 12 hours to kill off dustmites.
9. Consider wet wrapping maybe when your baby is a bit older
10. Join the national eczema society
11 Ask for a Dermatology referral (actually, our dermatologist is crap, but all the other 10 have made a huge difference to us!)

Finally, if you're doing all this and you are in the UK, apply for Disability Living Allowance.

By notty on Monday, April 04, 2005 - 12:51 pm:

How can i treat my 4month old baby's eczema and craddle cap

By celia on Sunday, January 13, 2002 - 11:35 am:

My 7 year-old grand-daughter Suzanna, who recently recovered from chickenpox, a week ago developed a small rash in the armpit, which was assumed to be due to an allergy to a new T-shirt. She then developed a wider pink rash which the doctor diagnosed as Urticaria and prescribed Piriton. This then became typical weepy eczema and the spots are now spreading to her face and she is feeling unwell.

I have read letters in Exchange about herpes infection with eczema going undiagnosed. Does this particular herpes virus have a specific name?

My husband is an advocate of Evening Primrose oil about which Exchange recently published a truncated letter from him!

Celia Matthews


Thank you, Davinder, for your reply. Herpes has been eliminated and the eczema patch has dried up. More spots continued to develop over her body but she is not unwell now and it seems to be clearing. The GP is still puzzled but we are not so concerned now. Could it be raised as a consequence of the recent chicken pox infection?

Happy New Year, Celia.

By Petra Laundon on Monday, February 05, 2001 - 02:42 pm:

I know this is too late for Nina but when my daughter had Chicken pox I rushed her to the GP as she has recurrent Eczema Herpeticum. She was prescribed oral Zovirax Chicken Pox treatment and this reduced the number of spots significantly.
Petra

By Nina on Thursday, January 04, 2001 - 10:08 pm:

Has anyone got any tips on how to help soothe a very itchy 15 month old with Chicken Pox? Aaron usually wears wet wraps 24 hrs a day, and we have been advised not to use them whilst he has the spots. Also no calamine lotion or Epaderm, but to use Diprobase instead.