Red skin fold and other skin problem

Gataloca

Gataloca

Registered User
My baby skin is red on some fold area: neck, armpits, behind the knees, legs, ankles, and the diaper area... Went to the doctor the other day and she said that it was eczema. She gave me hydrocortisone and anti inflammatory creams.

I used the creams for some days, and most of the redness is gone, but some still remain. I don't want to keep using the cream, and would like to try some other approach.

My baby skin seems to be dry. I was applying Cetaphil before his folds and other areas turned red, so I don't know if he got an allergy reaction to that. I switched to Aqueous cream, and Vaseline for really rough area like his feet.... but should I use moisturize cream on the folds?... or should I try to keep that areas dry? I think that the problem also is that my baby is very sweaty... would it be better to use talc on the folds?

My baby also have what seems to be heat rash also on his chest, back and neck. I bought some medicated talc and am applying that twice a day on that area.

His cheeks and face still have some rashes on it, but I don't know if it is because he scratch his face and rub his eyes a lot... I am also applying Aqueous cream there...
 
Do you have any animals at home? ANy mohair rugs etc in his vicinity? If so -may cause this issue. I would keep the folds clean and dry as it can develop a bacteria there. Try and stop all creams for a day. See what happens. Just use water to wash, wear cotton etc.. ANd make sure he is really well dried after his bath. If he has itchy eyes - could also be an allergy to something in his environment. I personally would stop all the creams and talcs and if it still occurs - get to the root of the problems instead of treating it.
 
Tea tree powder is very good for this kind of reaction. You can get it from IMI on Stanley Street. I would not use cortisone creams. They thin the skin....I know I used them for 30 years before finding out I was allergic to dairy. So yes, try to find out what is causing the reaction.
 
Bumps, I do have 2 cats. My hubby sometime insinuate that the baby skin problem is because of the cats, but I just didn't want to consider that possibility. He wants to get rid of them, but I just don't want to, specially when he was just speculating... he doesn't really know if the baby has allergy to the cats' hair, does he?

Sunrays, how do you use that tea tree powder?
 
eczema is very very common here but most babies grow out of it by the time they are 2ish. our son has quite bad eczema but it's mostly gone now.

daily oilatum bath really helps. QV is a good daily application cream. for the really bad dryness emulsifying ointment / cream helps. another cream which we apply to the inflamed / red areas is Pimecrolimus cream 1% (i am not sure if it's available here and under what name). sweat and heat really aggrevate itching - so avoiding that is crucial. also, hot water bath is not good for the skin - try sticking to normal or luke warm water. we have never used steroids, nothing against them but they really wouldnt solve the long term problem.

what really helped us was a visit to dermatologist. though most pediatricians here would say it's not needed, and honestly that's what our dermatologist also said (is that the worst? you dont need to see me for this). but what helped was that he explained in detail what was happenning. ruled out any other diagnosis. he also told us that we needed to do (keep the skin moisterized, avoid sweat situations etc). also that we would need to improvise - nothing would work for all body parts and in all seasons. etc
 
Thanks Shuchisingh. After having applied the cortisone for few days, most of the folds are now fine. I am applying talc on the folds and on his chest and back to keep them dry. My baby really get easily hot, and the worse thing is that I have to swaddle him, otherwise he would not sleep or keep waking up. I am using a light muslin blanket, but he still get hot, specially since his mattress is waterproof and does not provide good ventilation.

I am going to keep monitoring his skin condition. If it get worse, will go to a dermatologist instead. I really don't like the pediatrician I went the last time. I don't think it is correct to treat all the different conditions as the same thing, although the cortisone may be a magical cream that work for most condition. My baby has also some redness on the folds near the diaper area, and she just told me to apply the steroid cream... doesn't he also need something to prevent the diaper rash from coming again?.... I was using just Vaseline, but started using the Mustela diaper cream.
 
Suchisingh has given some really good advice, but I was also told not to use talc as it doesn't help the excema, may cause further irritation and can be bad for the baby if inhaled.

AGree just try using some nappy rash cream rather than the hydrocortisone on the nappy area, vaseline is ok as a barrier but most of teh nappy creams including Mustela also help clear it up as well as prevent it.
 
Not sure if it is relevant for eczema or not but I spoke to my pediatrician about redness under my babies arms, in skin folds etc (very mild) and he advised against using vaseline as it traps the moisture in which can aggravate the redness. In her case it was related to the heat and sweating, so not sure if that would be the same for eczema or not....
 
I have a cat and two daughters. One (child!) had the same problem as your DD and the other has perfect skin. The one with sensitive skin (as we call it), has just that - sensitive skin. It has nothing to do with the cat.

Her skin breaks out in a rash all over when she has her immunizations (just to give you some indication)! That is just the way she is. We manage it by using baby clothes washing detergent (even though she is not a baby anymore) and pH5.5 (or 5.1) bath wash -- and we also found we had to 'test' all of them too as some, such as the QV and the strange one starting with "M" both flared her skin worse! No face paint as that cause redness and when her excema flares we use the steroid cream (found elidell, not sure of the spelling - the best for her whole body as it is not greasy but costs $$$) for a few days just to keep it under control.

We also try to encourage her to use Sorbalene (again, sorry about the spelling) as it doesn't have perfume but she generally hates creams so it doesn't always happen.

Diet is also a consideration. Although we didn't really explore that. Have been told it can help keep sensitive skin under control.

As others have said, he may grow out of it. My DD is better than she was but I don't think she will ever be completely free -- I know that she will not have an acne problem when she is older though so I guess she is dealing with it now (we have the same type of skin complex)
 
My son also had very bad skin at about 4 months - his eczema was so very bad and covered most of his body. I would not use talc as it stops the skin breathing and also traps the sweat in the creases - I agree with TNT.

Do not use soap in his bath - just water or water and natural oil (olive is fine) or aqueous cream. I found that if I didn't want to use the steriod cream I would need to apply aqueous cream or Aveno cream (not sure if you can get this in HK) atleast 4 times a day to the effected areas - I basically applied cream every time I changed his nappy - he is now 8 months old and I still apply the cream but his skin is a lot better - as others said I think he may out grow it.
 
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