One of the Twins has Eczema (not EXMA!)

Whilst one has porcelain soft skin the other has suffered from dry skin and eczema since whenever I can remember.

Red, Sore, Weeping in the Creases: ankles, knees, wrists and hands

It was last summer when he was about 9 or 10 months old when the weeping wounds on his ankles were bad enough to warrant a trip to the Doctor.
Remember, I have twins, so I simply do not make appointments and I never go to the doctors' surgery, it is all just too difficult to get out of the house on a schedule.

Well, GP prescibed hydrocortisone cream to treat the eczema flare up and E45 as a general moisturiser.  As expected the cream did a marvellous job, within a few days the weeping gashes had closed.  But the redness around his feet never got better. I didn't keep using the hydrocortisone because I know is not supposed to be used continuously.

Reactions to Creams & Moisturisers Causing Eczema Flare Ups

To cut a long story very much shorter it slowly seemed to emerge that the more I put moisturiser on little Edward the worse his skin got: slowly redder, looking burnt and blistered.  I came to the conclusion it was the cream because it would appear only in places that had been moisturised.

Again, remember I have 3 children, so unlike some more diligent mothers, I neglected little Edward.  He did not get smoothered in moisturiser all over on a regular basis.  I was told he should because off his dry skin and small patches of eczema, but if I put cream all over his legs and tummy when they were just a litle dry, the next day they looked worse and red.

Specialist Skin Doctor at the Hospital

My GP made an appointment at the dermatology department.  The Eczema Doctor prescibed a potent corticosteroid ointment called Elocon 0.1% for use once a day for 5 days.  This treatment ended on Sunday 31st Jan. For the first time ever he had beautiful soft skin coloured legs with no red patches and no itching and scratching.

This lasted over a week but sadly I have to report that yesterday the redness reappeared, he was scratching again at night and today I used the milder hydrocortiscone ointment which she also prescribed which is to be used at the first sign of a flare up.  I hope this will stop the ezcema in its tracks but other parents will know you get so used to it being there it is hard to believe it will ever go.

Be careful where you take advice on the web, lots of people are selling products and have dubious credientials, Here is some sound advice on treatment for a baby: