Archive-name: misc-kids/eczema
Posting-Frequency: monthly
Last-Modified: July 2, 1996


               Misc.kids Frequently Asked Questions
                            Eczema 

======================================================================
Collection maintained by: Gloria Logan  (glogan@atk.com)
Last updated: July 2, 1996
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Copyright 1996, Gloria Logan.  Use and copying of this information are
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For a list of other FAQ files, look for the FAQ File Index posted to
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=======================================================================
                         Eczema FAQ
=======================================================================

Although I currently maintain this eczema FAQ, I have no personal
experience with eczema.  If you have any questions about eczema,
please do not send them to me.  Post them to the misc.kids.health
newsgroup instead.  Thank you.      - Gloria

Laura Dolson was the original keeper of this Eczema FAQ.  She wrote
the first part of this FAQ (down to the statement:  And now for the
"answers from the trenches"!)  If you have questions about what she
has written, she can be reached at:   dolson@cruzio.com

Laura writes:

While I was pregnant, and we were contemplating the possibilties
of what our child would be like, I remember saying to Mark "Well,
I do hope she doesn't get your skin!"  (Mark has a lot of trouble
with rashes, reactions to sun, etc.)  Well, no such luck!  Eczema
is a fact of life off and on, and probably will be for a good while
yet. :-(  But we have been able to keep it under control, for the
most part, by following many of the suggestions outlined below.  For
example, unless Emily is really DIRTY, we don't use soap at all, just
a soak in the tub and a warm wet washcloth for the face.  

We tried to figure out if it was allergies - milk products are often
the culprit, apparently.  But cutting out the obvious allergens
(milk, wheat, eggs, etc) didn't seem to make a differencein our case.
(Or me cutting those things out when I was still nursing.)  Emily's seems
to be worse in the summer, and almost always starts in "creases" - 
backs of knees and elbows, wrists, etc.  Some children have
it worse in winter when the air is dryer.  Emily's has gotten better
(or should I say "less bad") with each year - she is 3.5 now and
last winter we hardly had a problem at all.  This summer it came
back, but was pretty mild and easily controlled.

Best wishes, and good luck!

Laura


This first section is taken from a handout we got from our pediatrician,
which I thought was quite helpful.

Definition:  Eczema is a recurring skin condition characterized by 
             rash, dryness, and itching.

Cause:       There is no single known cause, however, allergies are
             sometimes implicated.

Cure:        There is no cure for the condition, however it may clear
             spontaneously.

Treatment:   The key to preventing a severe rash is early treatment of
             skin changes and itching.  (Our ped says eczema has been
             called "the itch that rashes" and recommends aggressive
             early treatment before it gets worse. LD)  There are
             number of things that you can do to decrease the frequency
             and/or severity of your child's eczema.

1.  Avoid soap, use soap substitutes.
       -Cetaphil (less expensive)
       -Emulave (expensive)
       -Neutrogena
       * Never use bubble bath as it has a disastrous effect on eczema.

2.  Decrease baths to 1-2 times per week and pour one capful of oil
    over bath water, blot dry.  Recommended oils:  Keri oil, baby oil,
    mineral oil.  (Note from LD:  This has been discussed in misc.kids,
    and the consensus seems to be that any unscented oil would be fine,
    i.e. vegetable oil.  However, Keri oil in the US, and similar oils
    in other countries are specifically made to disperse through the
    water, and not leave such a bathtub ring.)

3. Moisturize:   Recommendations: Keri lotion, 10% urea cream, Eucerin
   * Avoid Vaseline and ointments because they can block sweat glands
   and worsen rash.

4. Steroid creams are often used for eczema.  Don't use more than .5%
   the face.  You can try over the counter steroid creams, but if they
   don't work quickly, you can get a stronger cream by physician's
   prescription.  Follow MD's directions on usage.

5. Antihistamines, such as benadryl, can be used to control itching,
   which tends to be worse at night.

6. Keep nails clean and short to prevent scratching and infection.

7. Avoid skin irritants such as animal danders (dogs and cats), feathers,
   harsh fabrics (denim and corduoy), tight clothing, and even sometimes
   wool and silk.  Cotton clothing is recommended as much as possible.

8. Launder clothing with mild soap or detergent (Dreft, Ivory Snow,
   certain sans-additive detergents such as Tide Free).  Use no 
   additives such as enzymes, fabric softeners.  Wash new clothing
   prior to wearing.

9. Avoid temperature and humidity extremes, don't over-dress or over
   heat.  when humidity is low as during the winter in heated homes,
   a humidifier may be helpful.

10. Avoid swimming in chlorinated pools.  Lake and ocean swimming is
    fine.  Apply moisturizers afterwards.


And now for the "answers from the trenches"!

--------------------

My own experience has been that Eucerin lotion and cleansing bars instead of
soap do a great job.  Also in areas that get really dry I found by accident
one day that vaseline does a great job at curing the dryness.

--------------------

My daughter had eczema from about 8 months to 2 years.  Then, she
outgrew it.  My husband has bad eczema on his hands.  My baby boy is
developing eczema on his back.  I summarized what we do (having 
seen a dermatologist's whose own baby had eczema).
 
It's not something you've changed that is causing the eczema.  In my
experience, it just seems to take this long to show up.

1) Switch from Tide to Dreft of Ivory Snow.
2) Moisturize with a rich lotion (we use Eucerin).  Cover with
   a moisture barrier (we use Aquaphor).  Do this twice a day and
   after baths.  After baths, apply the lotion + ointment combination
   to dry patches while the baby is still damp (trap the water).
3) Apply 1% cortisone OINTMENT (not cream!) to the dry patches as necessary.
   We found that, by using really good over-the-counter products
   (Eucerin and Aquaphor) we only needed cortisone a few times a week.
   Cortisone can thin the skin, so use sparingly.  For faces, you may
   want to use 1/2%.  We use 1% there because we need it very rarely.
4) Switch from soap to Cetaphil.  This is a unique, expensive ($12?)
   non-soap cleanser.  Eventually, we were able to switch Laura back
   to unscented Dove (i.e. when the eczema was gone).
5) Don't let them stay in the bath too long.  We broke this rule a fair
   amount, but tried to compensate by adding Alpha-Keri lotion to the
   bath water.  Laura loves the bath so much, we let her stay in quite a 
   while sometimes.

It is possible that the eczema is caused by diet (often milk causes
rashes) but with our family history of eczema, I didn't believe this.
Besides, Laura and Brian are both on soy formula.  The good news is that
often babies outgrow the eczema.

--------------------

You might check for allergies.  My niece 'developed' eczema about a year
ago -- it turned out that she was sensitive to chlorine.  She had to give up
swimming lessons but that cured her allergies.  Her pediatrician is
recommending that she waits a few years before trying to take up
swimming again.

--------------------

This exact same thing happened to my son.  Without any skin
problems his first year, he suddenly developed eczema at about a year old.
It started on the backs of his knees and the insides of his elbows and
the back of his neck.  In addition, his skin seemed dryer all over.  Our
pediatrician told us to wash his clothes and his sheets in soap, not 
detergent, so we switched to Ivory soap.  I had been using liquid detergent,
like All, and Downy fabric softener.  I started using the Ivory soap and 
eliminated the fabric softener.  We also used cortisone cream to cure the 
rash.  The rash seemed worse when he was hot, so I tried to keep him cool,
and I dressed him in cotton clothes.  I bathed him every other day without
soap, and after his bath he'd get lotion all over.  All these measures seemed
to help some, but he'd still have occasional outbreaks that required 
cortisone.  Eventually he grew out of it--after a year or so.  I was
surprised that he developed a sensitivity to the laundry products I'd 
been using since he was born, but he did!

--------------------

My son, now 3 yrs old, developed eczema at about your son's age.
I think the introduction of dairy products into his diet brought it on.

Anyway, things you want to consider:

1) Infrequent bathing.  We were bathing my son every night; we cut
it back to twice a week.  If you don't like the thought of bathing
that infrequently, bathe your son with *water only* every other
bath (if your normal schedule is bathing him every other day, e.g.).
The idea is to limit contact with soap (or other cleansing products),
which brings me to...

2) Switch to a non-soap cleansing product for bathing.  I believe
the "baby bath" you're using is soap, which dries the skin.  We use
Eucerin cleansing bar.  Dove, which is soap but has an added
moisturizer, is another alternative.

3) Use a *good* moisturizer daily.  We use Eucerin lotion and/or
cream.  After bathing, leave your son's skin a little damp, then
apply moisturizer.  This will help "lock-in" moisture.  Other
good moisturizers include: Keri, Moisturel, and Complex-15.

4) Use hydrocortisone cream--sparingly--at first sign of a flare-up.
Hopefully, these will be infrequent if you follow the steps above.

5) Keep your son's nails clipped (this was always a battle for us!)
to minimize scratching.

6) Also, if your son is willing, consider showering with him instead
of bathing, since bathing usually involves sitting in soapy water for
an extended period.

We were able to keep my son's eczema under control using the above
steps.  He still has an occasional flare-up, but hardly ever.  Now we
apply moisturizer after bath only; it doesn't seem to have had a
detrimental effect.  We may need to start up daily application
again, what with dry weather approaching.

--------------------

My son has suffered with eczema since he was three months old.
At that time the doctor said to stop giving him baths, just to
use a wash cloth.  When he started crawing and walking, he found
that his natural element was sand, and we had to start baths again
which of course brought back the eczema. My current doctor recommend
Eucerin lotion.  I smear him with it when he gets out of the tub. It
does seem to keep the worst of the rash away.  During the winter when
the rash is at its worst, I don't bathe him as often (he can't play in
the sand box), and I don't use soap unless he really needs it. When
I shampoo him I do it last and pull him out of the water so the 
shampoo doesn't get too much on his legs.

--------------------

My doctor recommended two things for Adele's eczema:

        1. Eucerine cream (there was a second similar brand,
           but I don't remember the name)
        
        2. Do NOT use baby magic soap. Just "spot clean" with
           bar soap. For everything else, just let her sir
           (oops - SIT) in clean water with no soap.

We don't follow rule #2. But then again, we never had a case
as severe as yours sounds. Whenever we see it starting to act
up, we whip out the eucerine and that clears things up pretty
fast.

--------------------

My husband has always had trouble with eczema and he gets a prescription 
ointment for it - I'm not even sure what's in it, but it clears up the rash
in a couple of days.  I don't know that you'd want to use a prescription 
ointment on an 11 month old, though.  It's probably better to avoid it if you
can.  

I am 5 1/2 months pregnant now and I have started getting some dry patches 
which I treat with OTC hydrocortisone - it works, body/hand lotion DOESN'T.  

Also, taking oatmeal baths can help.  Aveeno sells an oatmeal bath powder you
can just add to a tub of water as you're drawing it.  I wouldn't use regular
oatmeal in the bath - I've tried it and it forms ungodly clumps!  :-)  Maybe 
that will help your little one when he gets itchy.  

--------------------

Our 5 year old daughter has mild problems with eczema.  She has red
spots around her mouth now.  They aren't oozing, but don't want to go
away.  We've been putting hydrocortisone cream on them.

She also still gets cradle cap at at times, which I also
understand is related to this.  

She has also had foot eczema.  For that, we need to have her wear
shoes no more than is necessary.  The shoes need to be leather or
breathable--no plastic stuff.  Sandles are good.  She also can't wear
the normal footed blanket sleepers--the plastic in the feet bother
her.  For the sleepers, I was replacing the feet with fleece feet at
first, with puff paint on the bottoms for skid resistance.  They wore
out faster, then we just cut the feet off.  At this time, we have been
finding a brand of sleepers, called Riegel, which have breathable feet
to be acceptable for her.  If they start causing problems, I think
I'll just cut the feet off and have her wear socks if the feet get too
cold.

--------------------

I've had eczema since I was very young.  Today it flairs up with work
pressures, by exposure to chemicals (cleaning supplies) and/or the dry
air.  My now 18 month old son had some patches of eczema at about 9 months,
it reoccurred once, but has been good since (though our driest season is
almost upon us).

Dryness is a big cause of those of us that have the tendency towards
eczema (did you doctor mention eczema is in the allergy family and many
with eczema will often have other allergies - food or respiratory?).  I
recommend, from experience, do not bathe too often or too long - water
dries the skin.  Use a mild soap.  Cetaphil is popular now (fairly new),
but very expensive.  Another very mild soap is Lowilla and much cheaper
than Cetaphil.

Moisturize a lot, in between flairs to help prevent them.  I use a mild
cortisone (over the counter) ointment on the affected spot during a flair
up.  I'm not excited about using cortisone on my baby often as it is said
it "thins" the skin.  On myself, I need a prescription strength cortisone
ointment and have sometimes had to take cortisone pills when it's at it's
worse.  But, the most important thing is to help prevent flair ups by
moisturizing.  I like Eucerine lotion (or longer lasting the cream).  It's
available at most drug stores.

Last, before this gets too long.  Even though you've used them in the past,
I try to stay away from scented detergents on your child's clothes.  Also
stay away from those scented dryer sheets.

--------------------

My son (2 yrs) has had eczema since about 10 months.  It seemed to start when
the variety of foods he ate increased.  At that time, his eczema got worse
with certain types of food (such as chicken, orange or orange juice, corn).
He was especially vulnerable to processed foods in baby foods jars that
contained any type of wheat product.  I tried giving more basic foods like
rice cereal and very soft rice cooked with pork and it helped.  You should
also use a fragrance-free moisturizer (Eucerin) where eczema seems to occur
most.  I limit baths to once every 5 days or less.  I use a lotion called
"Cetaphil" instead of soap and put lots of Eucerin all over his legs and arms
immediately after the bath.  Make sure the water is not too hot and limit the
length of the bath to avoid excessively drying out the skin.  I washed his
laundry with Ivory Snow.  Now I am trying Dreft to the pediatrician's
suggestion.

Wherever there are patches of eczema, I apply a medicated cream
(hydrocortisone 1% for his face) and something called TAC (.25%)
for the rest of his body.  When he is really trying to scratch,
I give him ATARAX, a liquid that he drinks to relieve the itching.
This works quite well most of the time.  It is best to limit
extensive use of the hydrocortisone because it can have long term effects
on the skin.

The irony is that with all that I do for the eczema, it still does not go away
completely.  I can only reduce it a little and my son gets very temperamental
when it is bad and he needs to scratch it.  Scratching will only make it worse
until the broken skins heals.  I just try to keep his mind off it by keeping
him busy with other things.

On the bright side, my sister's two kids both had eczema, and they started
growing out of it at about 3.5 years.  There are different levels are severity
in eczema.  I think my son has it more on the severe side.  If your cortisone
does not seem to work as well as it did, you need to see your pediatrician
or a dermatologist for something stronger.

--------------------

My baby (5.5 MO) has eczema only on her cheeks, but it goes away when I am
diligent with moisturizer.  I use Lubriderm.  I have sensative skin too, and
know that anything with fragrances in it is likely to cause problems, so make
 
sure that the lotion that you use is fragrance free.  (My doctor recommends  
Lubriderm and Eucerin.)

you might consider trying another detergent.  We use Arm and Hammer with  
no ill effect.  But my daycare provider put something on Karen last week that
 
she had washed because Karen had pooped on her two outfits.  By the evening
she had little red bumps all over her chest!  I will find out what kind of  
detergent my daycare provider uses.

--------------------

Nanette, we went through eczema with my son Joshua from birth to about a
year old, then it went away. He had it all over his scalp and eyebrows like
really bad cradle cap. He also had it on his face. We used the hydrocortisone
cream, prescription strength. I hated using it because there are side effects
listed on the information sheet, but it worked. When we slacked off the
problem
got worse. So, we just kept using it and finally the eczema went away.

The ONLY think that worked for me was the hydrocortisone cream.
We also used dandruff shampoo.

--------------------

From Maureen.Chew@east.sun.com Tue Dec  7 07:02:30 1993

Alot of the articles recommended Eucerin lotion.  We used
it and thought it was a waste of money.  Our daughter had
a fairly bad case at 3-4 months.  Eucerin didn't help
*at all*.  We used something called "Vanicream" (name sounds
suspicious) which is sold through the Mayo Clinic
pharmacies in Rochester,MN and Jaxsonville, FL.  It was recommended
to my mother for eczema after visiting the JAX Mayo Clinic.
It's used as a pharmaceutical base and is a petroleum based
moisturizer.  Rita's eczema was in control within a week
and we continue to use twice daily (she's 3 now- her eczema
is still in control but we are now fighting allergies).

You can order this from the Mayo clinics via 1-800-445-6326
and is roughly $10/lb. (You can ask for the Jaxsonville clinic
if that is closer to you - shipping will be less) though the
shipping is fairly reasonable.
During a recent visit to Florida, I also saw this sold
at Target stores.
We have no connection with the manufacturer- we had absolutely
no luck with Eucerin but are really sold on this stuff.

Maureen Chew

--------------------

I've had excezma my whole life - It has gotten better as an adult but it
still appears pretty consistently.  (my poor daughter has inherited my
excezma too)
Here are some suggestions:
1.  Use dove soap.  This is the only soap that did not dry my skin out.

2.  If your son does chores like washing dishes (or anything where his
hands are submerged in water) have him wear latex gloves.

3.  My doctor reccomended taking luke-warm salt baths (I don't remember
what kind of salt but the purpose is too rehydrate the skin) and only a
couple times a week.  Avoid showers and very hot water.

4.  Just after bathing, and before completely dry, spread moisturizing
lotion all over the body.  This helps trap the moisture in the skin.  Have
your son use lip balm too.

5.  Clothing closest to the body - like underwear and undershirts, socks -
should be 100% cotton.  Synthetics don't breathe.

6.  When I was a little girl, my excezma was horrible on my arm.  It itched
so bad that I would scratch, thus creating huge oozing scabs.  My mom cut
the foot off of a cotton sock and then put the sock over my excezma'd arm. 
This felt great! Perhaps the mild pressure from the sock as well as the
cotton helped reduce the itching.  I was able to forget about it for a
while.

7.  You can now purchase 1% cortisone cream over the counter.  Use it three
times a day - religiously. (I'd check first with your doctor to make sure
the cotisone is OK for your son)

8.  The humidifier is a good idea.

9.  If you have hard water, invest in a water softner.  This helped
enormously with me.

My skin gets better in the summer when it is not so dry out.  Most of my
suggestions has become second nature to me so living with excezma isn't so
bad.  

--------------------

My younger son was born with very, very dry skin.  We used Hydrated
Petroleum upon doctor's recommendation, bathed him infrequently (same
as you), and used a different washing machine detergent (I forget the
name offhand).

--------------------
 
Melissa got it off and on until she was about a year old.  Sarah has
it now too.  We don't bathe them too often, or use stringent soaps, use
plenty of gentle lotion, the humidifier, etc., much like you.
 
The 1/2% hydrocortisone (with aloe) didn't help much.  We resort to
Triamcinolone cream prescribed by the pediatrician.  3x daily and
Sarah is clear now except for one small spot on her back that doesn't
seem to want to go away.  Unless you're really against the cream, I
recommend it. (and I'm curious why someone would be against it - tell
me if I'm missing something)
 
BTW, both girls have asthma and some allergies.  Our allergist (and
pediatric asthma specialist) told me yesterday that the three are
associated - asthma, allergies, and exzema/dermatitis.  Interesting.
 
TAMARA
mommy to Melissa (5/1/91) and Sarah (5/3/93)
 
--------------------

I had eczma from infancy until age 18.  It wasn't always at the save
severity.  I can remember being very young (3 or 4) with my arms being
so "weepy" that my shirt sleeves would stick to my arms.  My face would
be red and crusty.  When I was older (8-17) I almost always wanted to
wear long sleeves, even in the summer, to conceal either the rash or the 
scars (not permanent scars but eczma would remove pigment so that years 
"tan" would would be "splotchy" - this was important when I was a teen).  
The last "worse" case that I remember was the summer that I was pregnant 
with Gregg, my arms, back of my legs, and face were "broken out".  I 
cried over this because I thought I would never "out grow" it if I had it 
this bad when my body was pregnant (I equated pregnant with mature).  BUT 
I never had another "bad" episode.  And have not had any at all for over 
19 years.  So you do "out grow" it, but for some people it takes awhile.  

BTW - Neither of my children have had it.  I hope number three doesn't
either.

Jeanetha - Mom to Gregg(20), Laura Jean(4) and ???(-30wks)

--------------------

When my mother was staying with us after Will was born, she scratched her 
leg with her fingernail, not badly. It bled and bled and was generally 
pretty scary. What could be making her bleed so easily? (Leukemia?)

Fortunately, it turned out to be merely that the hydrocortisone cream
she'd been using had thinned her skin too much. Somehow the Beconase AQ 
she'd been using for her asthma increased the steroid level beyond what 
she could handle, she told me, although this is not supposed to happen.
She decided she'd rather have skin problems than asthma--the skin problem
is less likely to kill her--and gave up using the cream.

I doubt you'll ever see this reaction in your child, and I think you
should keep using it as long as it's satisfactory and your doctor 
recommends it, but there *are* reasons for caution even with skin creams.

--------------------

My daughter Alison has suffered from eczema since birth, and we finally
went to an excellent pediatric dermatologist here in NYC based out of NYU.
He told us that humidifiers do nothing for moisturizing the skin, and that
some "creme" based lotions actually dry the skin.  Besides prescribing a
cortisone ointment, he suggested a great over the counter ointment,
"Aquaphor".  It is almost vaseline like in consistency, and it is supposed
to keep moisture _IN_ the skin.  He suggested using it immediatly after
a bath, even before drying her off. We saw immediate improvement (this may
have been due to a small sample of a powerful prescription ointment that
we used for only a few days), however there has been significant _LONG TERM_
improvement from just using the Aquaphor, without any cortisone.
Hope this helps.

--------------------

Something that works well with my daughter is Aquaphor Ointment.  I
like it much better than Eucerin creme for her because it's an
ointment, so goes on in a less irritating way.  I also use it on
diaper rash and never have to use anything else.  It's an all-natural
ointment that just speeds up healing.  I use that most of the time,
and only as a last resort use the prescription creme.  

I've been a lifelong sufferer of eczema.  I glob Eucerine (actually a
generic brand equivalent, much cheaper) all over after I shower.  I
use Bais soap for dry skin (I've tried many others and I'm least
irritated by it), and that's what I use on my daugther.  I tried
Cetaphil on myself at some point in the past, and it irritated my skin
more than it helped.  Of course I've used hydrocortisone creams of
over the years, and it HAS thinned out my skin, as someone else
warned.  The newer medicine I use is called Elocon, and my
dermatologist said it's not supposed to have the thinning effect.
That's what I use on my daughter as a last resort.

Bathing infrequently is something that's suggested a lot.  In my own
experience, that may help slightly, but hurts if there is sweating or
other irritating things falling on your skin.  I feel better after
washing and moisturizing.

Drastic changes in temperature are also irritating.  Tight clothing
too.  Disposable diapers, especially the waist/hip area where the
plastic is closest to the skin--my daughter reliably gets a rash in
that area when she uses plastic diapers, she's usually on cotton.  A
humidifier is good--remember to clean it out often with a solution
with bleach to remove molds--eczema can also be related to allergies.

Seems like you're doing all the right things.  In time many kids
outgrow it, so they say.

In my daugther's case, it improves after winter.  In my case, sweating
irritates me just as much, so it's a yearlong battle...

Damaris M. Ayuso   (dayuso@bbn.com)

--------------------

I thought I would pass on a few points I've picked up about my own eczema
which didn't develop until I was 17.  I'm not sure how relevant they are
to childhood eczema but I am interested in that because I may have babies
yet!

1) Eczema is related to asthma and hayfever (both in my family).  Doctors
call them the atopic triangle.

2) In my case the eczema and the asthma can be caused by house dust mite
faeces - these build up in bedding and soft furnishings and carpets.
An answer is to vacuum very often and to wash sheets and things hot
(>55 deg c).  You can get breathable barriers for mattresses and pillows
that prevent the passage of the faeces and the mites.

These things all helped my asthma a great deal (pretty much cured it)
and as a side-effect helped the eczema.

3) The cortico-steroid creams are effective but you can develop an allergy to
components of the cream!  If this happens you can find yourself using them
with a gradual worsening of the symptoms.  Answer - switch to a different
formulation.

Ben Strulo  (bstrulo@srd.bt.co.uk)

--------------------

My .02 cents worth: the 10% urea cream irritated my son's skin
more than it helped him.  The Eucerin creme (as opposed to lotion)
usually works. We're also using something else called Dermasil
which seems to keep it under control.

The rash/eczema is worse in winter than summer, probably due to
dryness.  Humidifier definitely helps.

I only bathe him 2 or 3 times a week and dissolve the Aveeno oatmeal
powder in the bathwater.  There's a similar product called Actibath
which doesn't leave a scum in the tub (or on the bath toys :-).
Downside: I suspect it's more expensive (though I have not yet
compared prices)--you only get 4 "cakes" as opposed to 8 powder
packets per package.  The Actibath cakes take longer to dissolve
but seem equally effective.

One other suggestion: shampoo and rinse the hair before running
the water into the bath, so that the shampoo does not negate the
effects of any "good" stuff you add to the water.

--Christine
  ausnit@software.org

--------------------

I had a scalp condition from the time I was _very_ young (and it
was called "cradle cap") until about 5 yrs ago.  It was called
(variously) eczema, seborrhea, seborrheic dermatitis, cradle cap,
etc, and persisted in spite of many OTC treatments, with itching,
scaling, peeling of thick chunks of skin, etc.  A friend gave me some
Ivory shampoo just before I went on a trip;  I used the Ivory for 6
days and the skin problem disappeared.  I've used the same brand of
shampoo (various flavors, usually unscented) ever since, with no
recurrence.  Twice, briefly, I've used other shampoos (Johnson's baby
shampoo and some Redken stuff), but each time started to get excessive
flakiness of scalp, etc., after 3-4 days. 

I attribute the "cure" to Ivory brand shampoo, and presume that the
cause is a reaction to some common ingredient of many (most) other
shampoos, including anti-dandruff types.  I am not an employee or
spokesperson for whoever makes Ivory products.

Richard Ebling (Richard_Ebling@email.state.ut.us)

--------------------

[from the first part of this Eczema FAQ]
>2.  Decrease baths to 1-2 times per week and pour one capful of oil
>    over bath water, blot dry.  Recommended oils:  Keri oil, baby oil,
>    mineral oil.  (Note from LD:  This has been discussed in misc.kids,
>    and the consensus seems to be that any unscented oil would be fine,
>    i.e. vegetable oil.  However, Keri oil in the US, and similar oils
>    in other countries are specifically made to disperse through the
>    water, and not leave such a bathtub ring.)

My daughter has been suffering from severe allergic dermatitis since she
was about 2 months old.  On a recommendation from our pediatricion, we
visited the Pediatric Clinical Research Unit at Johns Hopkins Hospital
(run by Dr. Hugh Sampson).  There she was diagnosed with significant
food allergies (dairy, eggs, turkey, peanuts), and put on an restrictive
diet.

In order to avoid constant use of hydrocortisone, (several times a day,
all over, to control eczema), Sampson recommended moisturizing several
times a day.  Interestingly, he said that baths are highly recommended,
as long as you avoid  soap.  The regime that she has been put through
(now for over three years), is to wrap her body in wet cloth diapers in
"Domeboro" solution, and then we wrap her with Depends style bed and
chair protectors.  Finally, we wrap her in a blanket, to retain body
heat.  When she was younger, she took her naps like this, but now just
watches a video (typically over 1 hour).  When we unwrap her, we then
"seal" her with petroleum jelly (or similar).  Then at night, she has a
soaking bath (at least 1/2 hour), with soap only as needed, and then
only at the end of the soak (we're on a well, so chloring drying her out
isn't a problem).  When she gets out, we also then seal her.  At night
she gets a small dose of anti-histimine to help her sleep (due to
itching).  BTW, Dr. Sampson's own daughter suffers from food allergy
induced eczema, so he knows how much work these regimes are!

This treatment has kept her almost 100% free of eczema flare-ups for the
last  three years.  While it is a high maintenance plan, it is almost
drug-free.  As she's gotten older, she has been "helping out" with her
"wrap and nap" (as it's called).  She helps in the setup of the
materials, in the unwrapping, and in the sealing (the goobying as she
calls it).

Of course, she's still on the restrictive diet, and wears only cotton
clothes; we use the standard baby laundry detergent, and double rinse
her wash, and of course avoid any dryer softener products.

Frankly, the biggest pain is not the daily treatments, it's her diet --
especially when we go out to eat.  Most restaurants are ignorant of what
goes in their food.  Suprisingly, the ones that know the most are the
fast food places, and the most helpful of those was...McDonalds!  They
provide a food allergy guide to their products.  Most McDonalds have it,
or can provide you an 800 number to call to receive it.  The other
restaurants that are helpful are the higher end ones, especially those
that make everything on premise and are run by the chef.  Here, you can
talk to the person who made everything or at least specfied how to make
everything.

Well, finally, whenever I hear of a child with bad eczema, I always
recommend that the parents contact a pediatric allergist, and always
refer them to the Food Allergy Network.

Dave Gellerman   (Dave_Gellerman@qmail.newbridge.com)

--------------------

I would like to add to the FAQ that in cases of eczema in arid or
semi-arid climate, infrequent bathing is *not* recommend, but just
the opposite.  Our allergist informed us that eczema is a hydration
problem and that in really severe cases, patients are wrapped in
moist towels.  For my 8 month son, we bathe him several times a
week and just wick the water off of him when he gets out of the
tub.  Then, we slather him with Aveeno or Eucerin to lock in the
moisture.   Works great!  We have also had better luck with Aveeno
over Eucerin.  Incidentally, Jake does have a milk allergy so once
we cut out the dairy products, his eczema has really improved.

Carol Stimmel
stimmel@fsl.noaa.gov 

--------------------

My 10 month old baby girl has mild eczema.

I did an InfoSeek search on the MDX collection and
located two articles (in BMJ and J Pediatr) which
indicate that casein hydrolysate formula was the
least likely to cause eczema (21%) vs. soy or cow's milk
based formula (63%, 70% respectively).

Steve Kirsch
stk@infoseek.com

--------------------

I've recently returned to work from maternity leave and while
surfing the net I discovered some information that I found
particularly interesting.

My 7 month old boy had developed a terribly ugly rash under his
chin and on his neck.  Two doctors suggested different creams and
treatments that did nothing to heal the rash only aggravate me.
After reading your faq I learned of similar cases where Eucerin was
used on the affected area. I purchased this over-the-counter cream
and after 24 hours I say a dramatic difference and 3 days later the
rash is almost completely gone.

Thank you to all who shared their personal stories and helped me
make my son more comfortable.

Sincerley

Wendy
wthistle@gill.ifmt.nf.ca

--------------------

I had very severe eczema when I was about 25, covering all my legs. I
stopped eating citrus fruits and it cleared up in about a week! I have
had no reoccurrence since although if I drink orange juice I start to itch.

I also got bad psoriasis a few years later and stopped drinking anything
with caffeine in it. I have had no reoccurrence.

I haven't yet been able to get rid of my bad acne which I've had since
puberty. I'm 47. Any ideas?

Peter Moulding  pm@legend.co.uk

--------------------

I have had eczema from a very young age--I was diagnosed at about age 
one.  After I turned four or five it went away for a long time, but then 
showed up again when I was in high school, primarily on my earlobes, 
neck, and arms.  I would also occasionally get it on the backs of my 
knees.  Some people told me that zinc cream (like the kind you use on a 
diaper rash) or aloe would work, but they didn't seem very effective.  
One natural way of controlling the milder outbreaks was to smear plain 
white yogurt on the affected area and let it dry there overnight.  This 
reduces redness and softens and moisturizes the area a bit.  However, 
it is only good on small patches or milder outbreaks.  The nice thing
about it is that it is completely natural and although you end up smelling
like yogurt it does make you feel better.  

The main thing that has helped me in controlling the rash is to limit the 
amount of stress in my life.  I have found that the thing that will make 
me break out the worst is simply feeling anxious or stressed out over a 
long period of time.  In cases like that nothing seemed to help me at 
all.  I tried everything.  Cortisone burned my skin, as did any 
moisturizers except for Jergen's fragrance-free lotion for extremely dry 
skin, and then only right after bathing.  But by reducing the stress in my 
life the rash has almost completely gone away.  

I don't know how useful this will be for small children.  But from 
someone who truly knows the terribleness of constant itching, I wish you 
the best.

Tanya Carter
tcarte04@calvin.edu

--------------------

My daughter Katie developed eczema at the age of 2. It didn't respond to
diet or any of the normal treatments. We took her to an allergy specialist
who, after many tests couldn't find any particular cause other than dairy
products. We had her on a 4 day rotation diet for six months. Nothing
seemed to help. The only thing we hadn't tried was filtering the water,
although the tests didn't show she was allergic to chlorine. Bullseye!
Within a week all eczema had disappeared. A year later she could tolerate
drinking chlorinated water (in our normal water supply). She is now 11
years old and has had no recurring eczema, although if she swims in a
chlorinated pool she tends to become very emotionally sensitive.

Belinda Webb, Melbourne Australia
kgee@mpx.com.au

--------------------

For young babies with Eczema if you want to avoid cortisone preparations 
and are keen on more natural products Calendula cream works wonders.

Charly
Charly@rdale.demon.co.uk

--------------------

Something that does not seem to have been mentioned is that a sudden 
worsening of eczema can sometimes be due to the onset of Chicken Pox.

My 3 year old daughter has had fairly mild eczema for a while and a 
couple of weeks back it suddenly got a lot worse. None of the usual 
treatments worked, until after a couple of weeks red spots started to 
appear. At first we thought this was the rash spreading, but of course it 
turned out to be chicken pox. The areas affected by eczema did not get 
spots, probably because of the poorer skin.

Apparently this is also when she was at her most contageous. The signs to 
watch out for are fever symptoms (coughing, sneezing, etc) and a sudden 
worsening of the eczema.

I hope this helps someone!

Derek Moore
dmoore@nildram.co.uk

--------------------

Our son Liam developed eczema at 3 months and is now 15 months, his
case was the usual, red itchy patches around wrists & hands, ankles
& feet, neck, face, and back, but rarely on front or nappy area.  We
tried everything, doctors, dermatologists, cortisone ointments,
bathing, aequeous creams, cotton clothing, changing washing powders,
elimination/restrictive diets etc.

We settled on a regimen of using cortisone (1%) and Aequous cream 
along with a restrictive diet, this worked quite well for the most
part but he still would wake up at night scratching and in distress,
the use of more cortisone cream eased it but we didn't like to use
too much of it.

We met another couple who had a similar experience to ours, they 
recommended a pharmacy that make up their own range of creams etc for
eczema and it worked very well for them. We tried it.

There was a dramatic improvement in his condition within 48 hours, 
within a few days his dry cracked feet and hands were soft and clear,
now after three weeks you have to look hard for signs of eczema, it
still bothers him as he is teething but nothing like before, he is
in better spirits and looks great. We still watch his diet and won't
change anything in that regard until he has had all his teeth.

The pharmacy is O'Leary's Pharmacy, 54A Thomas St, Dublin 8. Ireland.
Tel:+353 1 4542080.  Fax:+353 1 4533672.  Ask for Mr Iain Macdonald.  

BTW.  I am in NO way connected with am buisness, I write this in the
hope that it will benefit others as well as it has us.

Brian Fitzsimons
brianftz@indigo.ie

--------------------

We have been battling eczema with our 9 month old son. We have tried 
everything: Eucerin, Aquaphor, Calendula cream and of course cortisone 
steroids which work well but have side effects. We recently discovered 
Theraplex! It works and is not a steroid. Theraplex can be found at 
Target and Longs.

We also use Aveeno cleanser to wash his skin and shampoo his hair. His 
eczema is now under control. Hope this helps.

David and Helen Wong. 
dwong91@ix.netcom.com

--------------------

I have had eczema for all twenty years I've been alive, and I now believe
the main cause to be stress.  Even as a child I remember embarassing
situations as having caused flare-ups.  Nonetheless, eczema is also
allergy-related, and the April-May months are the worst for my eczema
due to the high air pollen content.  Also, I am allergic to dust mite
feces, which are found everywhere.  A HEPA air filter helps this
situation somewhat, but is quite expensive relative to the benefits it
provides.  I am also allergic to a couple items of fruit -- banannas
and grapefruit.

How did I pinpoint the causes of my eczema?  I took a scratch test in a
dermatologist's office.  He tested the various known allergins by placing
a drop of each on my back and pricking them to see whether or not a
flare-up occurred.  (By the way, the itching is what causes the rash, not
the allergin by itself.)  I recommend scratch tests for those who have
insurance for them and want to discover which foods to avoid.

My dermatologist recommended showering every other day and avoiding
extended amounts of time pool-swimming, as chlorine is an abrasive
chemical (but not an allergin).  I've heard that ocean swimming can
actually help the disease due to certain minerals found in the water.  

Also, as most of you already know, those with eczema should avoid
fragranced deodorents, perfumes, soaps, and lotions.  Fragrance acts
as a drying agent.  There are lots of fragrance-free lotions on the
market, but I have found that Eucerin lotion (not creme) works
especially well.  In extreme cases, eczema sufferers should apply the
lotion three times a day.

Steriods cause premature aging and do not work if used continuously for
long periods of time, but they can relieve the itching and redness.  I
always use them as a last resort.

I have tried an over-the-counter homeopathic remedy, but I did not find
any relief which justified the extreme pain I went through while taking
it.  I do not recommend them.  Perhaps a homeopathic doctor or herbalist
would be more efficient in determining the right type of medication.  I
have also tried herbal remedies, and they did nothing.  My friend said
she noticed that licorice tea relieved her psoriasis (a related skin
disease).

Most of all, I recommend that those with eczema avoid stressful situations.
Finals week was horrible for me last year (I woke up in the middle of the
night from the painful rash), but since then I've began taking relaxing
breaks and  meditating, and finals have been much more bearable.  

Finally, EXERCISE and healthy eating habits create healthy skin.
Exercising for at least 30 minutes, three times a week will clean the
blood of toxins which are built up by stress and will allow the skin to
hydrate itself.  
  
Good luck, and I have heard that some children finally outgrow their
eczema altogether.  I'm still waiting, though mine has improved
considerably.

Joanne Sterbentz
joannems@uclink4.berkeley.edu

--------------------

