posted
Boo has had a rash for over two weeks now and I can't get rid of it.
It's red, blotchy, raised, and hot to the touch. He says it itches and hurts.
We've tried every OTC ointment, cream, and powder made for kids, athelete's foot creme, nystatin cream, and ketoconazole cream. Nothing is helping.
The soonest his doctor can see him will be Thursday of next week, but the poor boy is miserable.
I'd appreciate any advice anyone can give, and I'd be happy to email pictures of the actual rash to anyone that can help. I obviously don't want to post them on the internet, though, to link to.
ETA: we haven't changed anything as far as soaps or diet goes, except that I've been putting him in cloth for about a week, and those are washed and then rinsed 4 times before I dry them.
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posted
My nephew had to use prescription oral anti-fungals for his diaper rash because it was so bad. My sister-in-law's favorite cream to use was Butt Paste. Give it a try?
Posts: 161 | Registered: Jul 2002
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You are welcome to email me pictures. sara dot sasse at gmail dot com. I would keep them confidential and destroy after the initial viewing.
Eight main questions:
1) Any fever?
2) Is he a generally healthy kid (any medical problems like eczema or asthma, past surgeries or ER visits, etc.)?
3) Any medications or known allergies?
4) Any blisters or areas that look like crusted and dried honey?
5) Any little round red spots kind of clustered outside the main red area?
6) Does the rash seem to spread out from inside the creases of skin (groin area), or is that tucked-away skin spared from the rash?
7) Anything happen like this before?
8) Anything else acutely going on (cough, vomiting, diarrhea, other aches and pains)?
Depending on what you answer, it's probably going to sound like a yeast infection. In that case, ther are some things you can definitely try.
Posts: 14017 | Registered: May 2000
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A lot of yeast is now resistant to typical first-line antifungals. There is still something over-the-counter to try, though.
Posts: 14017 | Registered: May 2000
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Boon
unregistered
posted
1. No, no fever.
2. Yes, the only thing he's been to the hospital for since he was born was a bead up the nose. <grin>
3. No, none.
4. No, nothing seeping or off color.
5. You can see them in the pictures.
6. Again, you can see all the rash in the pictures. Nothing in the creases.
7. No, never. Not with any of the kids that I can remember.
posted
It isn't a typical Candida (yeast) infection, but it also doesn't look like one of the scary rashes. No red flags, as it were.
Although it isn't typical, there are some "satellite lesions" that look Candidal in nature. Even though you say it isn't honey-crusted, there does look to be an orangey sort of tinge to the larger areas that still makes me think of streptococcal secondary infection on a yeast rash area.
So, realizing that this is over the 'net and just a best guess:
I see nothing that worries me that he is in danger. However, if it starts spreading really fast, develops hot red streaks around it, or if he gets a fever / starts acting really funny, I'd get him seen immediately.
Barring that, I'd consider talking to your local drugstore pharmicist about a topical Gentian Violet solution (used a lot by pregnant moms and babies for thrush and nipple yeast infections, so lots of evidence that it is safe in kids when used correctly -- and it's non-prescription). This stains clothes (permanently) and skin (temporarily) purple, though, so be careful of things you want to save. Also, I'd tend to use it now in order to let it wear off as much as possible before Thursday, when his doc can see him (best of all would be to run this plan past his doctor or his doctor's nurse first, by the way). Keep that appointment just in case he isn't better.
I'd add on that a non-prescription antibacterial like Bacitracin or Polysporin (also non-prescription), and then get really serious about making him more comfortable. Dry to air nudity is good, otherwise loose clothes. Sitz bath for comfort in cool water with some baking soda and/or Aveeno oatmeal bath powder. Regular ibuprofen for a few days (if it's okay for him to take, which it should be) to reduce inflammation, and Benedryl at the recommended doses on the package to keep him from being as itchy. (Might make him sleepy, might make him wired -- hard to tell in advance.)
That's probably what I would think about doing first. Again, your best bet is to run this past his doctor or doctor's nurse first, if you can.
Posts: 14017 | Registered: May 2000
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By the way, I viewed the pictures and then deleted the email from my mail (and from the Trash). Just so's you know. Posts: 14017 | Registered: May 2000
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Boon
unregistered
posted
I appreciate your advice. I'll definitely be calling the doctor's answering service in the morning and asking about the gentian violet and bacitracin, etc. Is Neosporin the same thing? We have tons of that.
I try to let him be nude for an hour or two every time I have to clean him up after an accident, though he's been working on his potty training. This is also part of why we switched him back to cloth: he feels the wetness in them better, and his training pants are much easier to pull up and down than even disposeable training pants.
I'll definitely also try the baking soda/oatmeal thing in the morning as well.
I just got done feeding him, and then gave him some ibuprofen and benadryl, and he passed smooth out. I hope he's down for the night.
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Neosporin antibacterial ointment is exactly the sort of thing I had in mind. Bacitracin is one of the three components. It's good to keep applying it multiple times a day. The directions (I believe -- you should check to be sure) are 1 to 3 times a day, and I'd make it three times if you can.
If your physician or nurse is unfamiliar with Gentian violet, you can remind them about the purple dye for treating breastfeeding women with yeast-infected nipples and the yeast thrush in baby's mouths. It's an old remedy that goes back to medieval times, but it is currently becoming even more popular as resistance to other anti-fungals increases. As far as I know, there is no documented resistance of Candida to Gentian violet yet. The main issue is staining clothing and making it harder to see what the rash looked like before the purple! But if it is going to be a week of pain and misery before he can be seen, I do think it's worth a good try.
It's very very safe, even for the youngest infants, although you should (of course) follow the package directions. Multiple applications may be required.
Keeping ahead of the pain and itch will help minimize the total amount of medication you give him. I'd consider scheduling the ibuprofen (and maybe Benedryl) as per the package directions. If the Benedryl pills knock him out too much, you can also try the Benedryl cream, again as per the package directions.
Good luck. Hope your little tyke feels a lot better soon.
Posts: 14017 | Registered: May 2000
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PS: I'd avoid steroid creams until he is seen by a physician, even if they are over-the-counter. Steroid creams can definitely help with itching and inflammation, but I really do suspect a bacterial secondary infection, and steroids would make it harder for the body to fight the infection. Could well make it worse.
Benedryl cream doesn't have this problem.
Posts: 14017 | Registered: May 2000
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posted
My son (who'll be three at the end of the month) used to get horrid diaper rashes if I used generic diapers. (I didn't do cloth until it was time for potty training because it was too hard for traveling and daycare). We did end up with several yeast type infections that needed special perscription creams. However, usually we managed ok once our pediatrician told us about Dr. Smith's diaper rash cream. At the time it only came in a "tub" not a tube, but now I think I've seen it in a tube as well. I don't know WHY this seems to work better than the other diaper rash creams, but it does... or at least it did for us. Just a suggestion...
Posts: 1321 | Registered: Jun 2006
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Our daughter got bad diaper rash every once in a while. We tried aftershave lotion a few times. She screamed like a banshee, but the rash seemed to clear up quickly.
Posts: 144 | Registered: Apr 2003
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Emma gets a nasty raised diaper rash whenever she has a virus that lasts more than a few days.
We find that Eucerin usually helps it, though (she has a reaction to zinc!) so that is probably not what the Boo-bear has.
Posts: 21182 | Registered: Sep 2004
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If you end up going the prescription steroid cream route, then let me throw in my opinion that Synalar is the best invention ever by modern medicine. I've been prescribed that all my life for my atopic dermatitis, and I swear it's magic. (Don't let the drug store convince you to get the generic, though. In my experience this is one situation where the generic is definitely not as good.)
posted
My family uses a little recipe that I'm not sure who made up but it seems to work when other stuff doesn't. We mix together regular Desitin, Vaseline and Maalox. The Desitin does what it usually does, the vaseline makes it thicker and stick together better and adds more wetness barrior and the Maalox soothes the acidity of the rash itself. It's hard to mix together into a smooth formula, but it can be done with a little patience.
My 2 cents. Hope the little one is feeling better soon.
Posts: 293 | Registered: Sep 2006
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Just thought I'd throw in our no-fail family recipe, because you probably have the ingredients on hand.However, I'd leave it as a last resort as it does sting and makes your baby smell like a salad.
Puree olive oil with garlic ( fresh) to make a paste. Apply to clean dry bottom several times a day. The baby will scream like the aforementioned banshee, but it has never failed to work for us within 2 days.
Posts: 2711 | Registered: Mar 2004
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Update: Boo woke up last night at about 11pm, crying about how his butt hurt. Since it was late at night, and I have no Aveeno products in the house, I ran him a warm bath and put some baking soda and ground up regular oatmeal in it. Figured it couldn't hurt.
He immediately said it felt nice, and his hiney felt better until this afternoon, though it still looked bad. I've continued with the keto cream (the last thing his doctor told me to do) and benadryl/ibuprofen regimen today, but called her this morning about the neosporin and gentian violet. She said to wait to change anything, continue what I'm doing, and call her office Monday morning and she'd squeeze him in ASAP.
I appreciate all the advice given in this thread. Actually, Maalox is my second in line right after plain vaseline to treat mild daiper rash, and I tried it at the very beginning. I just schmear it on (yes, it's runny), let it dry, and then nudie as long as possible before daiper or underwear as normal.
With most daiper rashes, a simple water rinse after each cleaning-up and then plenty of nudie time is enough to clear them up within a day or two. This one is just...really resistant to everything, it seems.
Oh yeah, forgot to finish up there. So he got up at about 11 last night, got a sitz bath, and then sat around nudie for a while watching Little Einsteins with me. Then I put his keto on and just wrapped a cotton nappie around him, intending to just hold him a while before I put a regular daiper on him for the night. Little turkey stayed up until 6am!!! Guess the benadryl wound him up last night.
So then, he finally went to sleep at 6, got back up at 9, and went all day and then finally crashed about midnight tonight. I'm exhausted. Especially since I had an appointment with Santa today, and had to go help his elves pick out toys to make my little ones.
Anyway, I'm going to bed now. I'll let y'all know what his doctor says Monday, unless something changes between now and then. Thanks again.
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