Diaper Rashes
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Aug 2006
My 4 month old daughter has a very mysterious
diaper rash that seems to get better the longer she is left in disposable
diapers!? She sleeps very well though the night so she is in a
disposable (she has always slept in disposables) for about 12 hours
every night, and when she wakes up she has almost NO diaper rash. As
the day goes on, the diaper rash gets worse and worse and she was
bright red on her labia area (not on her bottom at all) by bedtime. It has
gotten a bit better since we have taken her out of prefolds and are using
disposables (and the one bumGenius!). We also stopped using all
commercial wipes (which we would only use out of the house, at home
we use washcloths and warm water), and the A+D that I used to smear
on religiously with each of her 8+ diaper changes I was doing daily. She
has always been aired out for 2+ hours everyday. All of this came on in
the past month, even though we have been doing all of the above with
no changes since birth. I cut all dairy out of my diet (I'm exclusively
breastfeeding), and it made no difference. I have had no other changes
to my diet.
Our pediatrition was a bit perplexed by this and told us to stop using the
commercial wipes and the A+D since those are two things that wouldn't
be happening overnight, but that I was doing a lot of during the day. He
also prescribed a powder called Nystop that we are to use 4 times a day
-- and to only change her 4 times a day! (Unless she poops in which
case I change her immediately of course, but she only poops once every
other day or two). I air her out for .5-1 hour in between each changing.
Things have gotten a lot better with her in the disposables, the limited
changing, and the Nystop, but it still does seem to get a bit worse as the
day goes on. My next step is to change the detergent I am washing the
wipes in.... Has anyone had any experience with such a bizarre diaper
rash problem? Any advice?
If anyone has any input to either question I would greatly appreciate it.
Thank you so much - BPN is wonderful!
Nicole
First, make sure the rash isn't a yeast infection.
We cloth diaper using mostly prefolds (also some pocket diapers and
AIOs) during the day and disposables at night and had a persistent
diaper rash problem when our daughter was first born. We didn't use
commercial diaper wipes but only paper towels and warm water.
We eliminated the rash problem when we applied diaper cream to her
bottom before bed-time every night and also changed her disposables
during the night when possible. Even though disposables can hold a lot
of liquid, you still need to change the diaper frequently. Every time
she woke up for a feeding, we changed her. In the morning it's also best
to clean your baby's bottom before putting on another diaper.
Also pre-wash your cloth diapers and double-rinse. Use less detergent
so nothing is left on the diapers. No fabric softener sheets, use some
vinegar in the rinse cycle.
Our daughter is now 7 months and has not had a diaper rash again .
Quynh
Hi there. I used a cloth diaper service for my son for a year and a
half, and they do not use really hypoallerenic detergents and the
diapers themselves were sometimes scratchy, however, my son never had
diaper rash until we would go on vacation and have to use disposeables.
So, I hated to use disposeables because that is when he would get rashy.
I do know that with the cloth diapers, you have to change them way more
often than the disposeables because the urine isn't wicked away. The
rash that you are describing and the powder that the MD gave you points
to a fungal infection, like jock itch. My son developed that after
switching to disposeables full time. Like you say, bright red and
uncomfortable looking. Upon our Dr.'s advice, we slathered him with a
half-and-half mixture of anti-fungal creme and cortisone (both over the
counter) 2x a day for 2-3 weeks. But fungal overqrowths take a long time
to respond- at least 2 weeks from the time you start treating them.
Don't give up yet, it just takes a while. In the meantime, don't put any
more A&D on her, that only keeps the skin moist and compounds the
problem.
After you are done with the Nystop, just start using a cornstarch powder
or let her air and use no cream. I don't know about the BumGenius
diapers, they were not available then, but I pretty much just stuck to
cotton prefolds, and was happy with those. One thing, are your other
diapers all-in-ones or do you use a diaper wrap? It might not be the
diaper, but the diaper wrap that is not breathing and keeping things too
moist. I would be happy to talk to you about diaper wraps as I think I
have pretty much tried all that were available in 2004- and yes, that
did get expensive.
lou
My guess is you need to ''strip'' your prefolds, there is likely
something in your wash, or accummulated washing, that has built up on
the cloth. I wash with ''all free and clear'' or Kirkland's equivalent
regularly. Every couple months I add about 1/4 cup baking soda to the
wash with vinegar to the rinse cycle. The baking soda/vinegar helps to
remove any buildup there might be.
Oh and no fabric sheets in the dryer!
rash free
Regarding the diaper rash question: Your daughter may have a yeast
infection; it is possible the disposable diapers keep her dry enough for
the yeast to slack off, while cloth diapers, being less good at wicking
away moisture, allow it to flare up. Check the rash -- does it look
slightly raised where it is red?
If it does appear to be yeast, check with your pediatrician about a
prescription medication. I've found that Nystatin is about the only
thing that will help my son.
Karen
Feb 2004
My 3 year old daughter is still in diapers at night only. She
has recently developed a bacterial diaper rash that is proving
really hard to treat. The doctor said it was ''folliculitus''
and prescribed Cefzil. Afer 2 10-day courses of Cefzil the rash
has gotten better but returns full force a couple of days post
medication. Now he is recommending 4-6 WEEKS of eurithromycin
(sp?). Ack, that sounds like so long for a little one to be on
antibiotics. Has anyone else experienced this? What was the
result? Any suggestions for alternative/homeopathic remedies
that may help shorten the lenght she has to take meds?
When my babies had bacterial diaper rash, my pediatrician
prescribed Bactroban ointment -- which always worked like a
charm--I never was prescribed oral antibiotics. Worth asking
about....
ann
You might want to ask your doc about Augmentin, which is a
combination of two antibiotics, amoxicillin and clavulanate
potassium. We had good results with it.
- not a doc
I would got to see a homepath, such as Christine Cirvuello
(spelling not correct sorry) in El Cerrito. or Jay Sordean on
Telegraph near Whole Foods, of the Redwood Clinic. Both do work
with children. That sounds like an obscene amount of antibiotics
for a diaper rash and for such a little one I'd be worried
about increased a! ntibiotic resistance if she needs them in the
future, plus they are just so harsh on the tummy, etc. 3 y.o.'s
can take acidophilus, we use powdered form a teaspoonful a few
hours after the antibiotics (otherwise the antibiotics may kill
most of the aci.) This could be done for a few weeks to help
restore the healthy bacteria robbed already by having taken the
antibiotics. You can also put a teeny amount of acidophilus
right on the rash, this would be more effective if it is yeast
but it's worth a try just in case there is a yeast infection/
rash caused , worsened, or as a side effect from all the
antibiotics. If it's not painful to her (I don't think you
mentioned either way?) then what is the possibility of not
treating (ask a pediatrician)? I'd also ask a ped. why topical
antibiotics are not feasible. Congrats. on your caution and good
luck to you and your little one.
Chris
! Christine Chiarello at the Hahnemmann Clinic in El Cerrito
might be able to help you. She's a homeopath.
For a pro-biotic diet to help your daughter build up the good
bacteria that keeps the bad bacteria in check, try Nourishing
Traditions by Sally Fallon.
emikiten
I had a lot of trouble with repeated diaper rash in my babies -
until a midwife told me this:
Try putting corn starch powder in the diaper - just sprinkle it
on the baby's bottom, and on the diaper before you put it on.
About a small handful - enough to have powder everywhere
basically!
It absorbs the moisture, and somehow seems to work wonders.
My poor son was red and sore for months before I found this out.
I don't know if the rash was bacterial, but it was severe, and
nothing else worked.
Good luck,
Janice
My son had a very stubborn condition when he was an infant, that
made him miserable, red, raw penis, and ! of course peeing was
excrutiating. I tried everything, and it kept coming back,
until..Tea Tree Ointment. The Skin Ointment, not the oil
straight, made by Desert Essence company. It's available at
health food stores, Whole Foods,
Berkeley Bowl, etc., probably also at many mainstream stores as
well. It addresses both bacterial and fungal conditions, and the
latter are quite stubborn, and sometimes misdiagnosed for the
former. Good luck!
kim
aside from doing all the usual diaper rash stuff - naked time,
daily baths, air dry thoroughly after a diaper change (we use
the hair dryer on low),
you may want to try treating the foliculitis with antibacterial
soap, and then selsun blue shampoo which kills germs that
commonly cause it. even though the rash is not on her head, if
the bacteria live there, they will recolonize suseptible areas -
that maybe why it kee! ps coming back. but keep in mind that this
is an ADULT solution - check first to make sure selsun blue is
OK for kids.
SDD
My two year old just got over an extended case of ''folliculitus''.
In the end, we did a one week course of antibiotics (I dont'
remember the name, but if you email me because you want to know,
I can find out. It started with a C). Anyway, before that we
tried everything (except a homeopath, which if this didn't work
would have been my next step; but unfortunately, homeopath's are
out of pocket!). We tried Neosporin, cornstarch, hydrocortisone
cream. It just kept coming back, then some of the follicles were
getting infected. Six months later, we did the oral antibiotic.
Cleared it up almost all the way, then the rest of it cleared up
on its own. Now I use Kiehl's diaper area ointment (not their
diaper rash ointment, its different) to keep her skin well
moisturized in the hopes th! at it will prevent a reoccurence. Its
funny because she never had diaper rash problems until this.
Anyway, the Kiehl's is great (works really well for my five year
old who gets red in the ''diaper'' area frequently), but its
pricey. Its available at Nordies but it lasts a long time. Good
luck and let me know if you want the name of the antibiotic.
hilary
By now 13 year old daughter had horrible diaper rash. We tried
everything - everything! What worked was that we switched her to
lactose free milk. I still don't know why it worked, but we
noticed after visiting friends who only had lactose free milk
that she drank during a weekend visit that things improved. Once
we switched her, the diaper rash totally went away. She still
ate other milk products - yogurt, occasional ice cream, but
mostly frozen yogurt, with no further problems. She remained on
the lactose free milk for years, we slowly moved her to regular
milk when she was 7 or 8 and things are fine. If your child is
old enough to be drinking milk you might give it a try.
anon
Jan 2003
Our 8 month old daughter has had a rash for more than 6 weeks
now. It is 2 oval shapes of red on each of the fat folds just
to the outside of her labia. We think it is caused by irration
from the 'runners' of the diapers. Here is what we have tried
so far: all different types/sizes/brands of diapers(including
cloth), we do not use wipes (just water and cloth or tissues),
we have tried all the different creams(desitin, A&D, bag
balm...), we have not put her in anything that would cause
pressure in that area (exersaucer, doorway jumpers etc...). We
finally went to her doctor who said, oatmeal baths 3/per day,
cut out the 'runners' on the diapers, and put on hydrocortizone
1% cream. This has helped only very slightly and now she wants
us to use lotimin cream, which I really do not want to do. Am
I missing anything? Should I try vit. E or aloe? Any suggestions
would be greatly appreciately. Thanks
Andrea
The only thing I've found that will really clear up a diaper
rash for my children is Nystatin Ointment. It's an antibiotic
cream, available by prescription, so I use it sparingly with
regular diaper cream only when the situation defies the usual
procedures. The pediatrician also recommended various mixes of
cortizone, Lotrimin and other over the counter preparations.
None of them worked, which was just as well, as something about
smearing an athlete's foot cream on my infant girl's genitals
didn't really sit right with me.
KMS
My son gets diaper rash fairly often (sensitive skin) -- esp. if
a food doesn't agree with him. The way we get his skin to heal?
Lotrimin (generic: Clotrimazole). Not sure what your reasons are
for avoiding it, but the reason your doctor has suggested it to
you is because it works! Seems like you'd want to try it, given
your daughter's situation . . .
The other thing we do is pat cornstarch on the diaper area with
a cotton ball after cleansing his skin to make sure it's
completely dry -- then comes Lotrimin, then Desitin.
L.
Andrea,
PLEASE! have your daughter cultured for vaginal strep (for which
hydrocortisone will do nothing); I assume that your pediatrician
has already ruled out yeast??
Concerned mom and physician
Air that bottom out! The best thing for the rash is no diaper at
all. If you can, let your daughter go without for as many hours
a day as possible. It's messy, but the air really works. Have
you tried Aquaphor cream? It's a good barrier cream, as well.
Good luck!
anon
My son had the same problem when he was 5 months old (he's 7.5
mos now). I finally got rid of the problem with a combination
of the following:
-- very frequent diaper changes (10 to 14 diapers per day)
-- with every diaper change, applied Desitin Creamy with Aloe
and Vitamin E - this worked better than any other ointment I
tried.
-- bathed him at least once a day (I think this got him more
thoroughly clean than just washing the area with a wash cloth
and water).
-- let him ''air out'' after his bath by going diaperless for at
least an hour. Fortunately, my son only poops once a day, in
the morning, so I'd wait till after that. Of course, it was
still a bit messy, but I put him down on a big old blanket,
which I washed afterwards. Of course, at 8 months your daughter
may be more mobile than my son was, so this could be more of a
challenge.
-- hydrocortisone cream - the rash was already getting better by
the time I started using this, but I think it might have helped.
Good luck!
-- mama of a rash free baby
When my daughter was an infant she had a pretty bad diaper rash
a couple of times that necessitated using lotrimin combined with
hydrocortizone cream. We also cut out wipes just using viva
paper towels (as recommended by the advice nurse)and water.
This worked extremely well to clear up the rash and made my
daughter much more comfortable. Good luck.
Hannah
If it is fungal infection, all the treatments you have tired will
not work. Especially if desitin and hydrocortizone have not
worked, there is a good chance it is fungal. This is an area that
could be moist, and perfect for fungus. Try the fungicide
(Lotrimin), you will know in a few days- if the rash gets better,
then finish the treatment (it may be several weeks). Fungus can
stay under the skin for weeks, and the rash may re-occur. The
treatment is better than having a persistant fungal infection-
especially if it spreads.
Lisa
Sounds like a yeast infection. My daughter had a rash that did
not clear up with diaper cream and I used good old monistat
cream and it cleared up within a few days. I think yeast
infections are harmless but I would take her to the docter
regardless. 6 weeks sounds like an awefully long time to let
this continue-good luck!
anon
Here's what works for us, although diaper rash is something
that seems to come back often. I find vaseline works better (or
at least just as well) than diaper creams and we use it pretty
generously. Also, we use a little Cetaphil lotion on the wet
cloth/paper towels we use to clean the area and then use a
towel to dry the area well before re-diapering. And when
possible, we let our child run around for a while each day
without a diaper on. Good luck!
anon
Hi. I have had the same problem with my son. He can get diaper
rash so bad that he has open sores. The lotrimine really does
help. According to my pediatrician, a lot of times diaper rash
can be caused by a yeast infection, hence the reasoning for the
lotramine cream. when my son's diaper rash gets really bad I
usually do a combination of lotramine, cortizone cream and the
zinc-oxide type butt cream. That usually helps the problem. I
also use only water and paper towels to wipe up after a poopy
diaper to help cut down on any irratation to the diaper rash. I
have also had to use the zinc-oxide cream on a pretty regular
basis to help avoid the major flare ups. Hope it clears up soon!
Lisa
According to my acupuncturist, aloe is the way for the diaper
rash. Sorry, no first hand experience yet to back it up..
jeong
Our 10 month old daughter had very bad diaper rash for about a
week. We used a blow dryer on her tush at diaper changes to keep
her very dry and changed her more frequently than usual. We also
cut out her juice intake at that time so that she had less acid
in her system. Balmex also helped. She is now clear and free.
Good Luck
In incontinent adults matching areas in the perineal area are
almost always fungus/yeast related. About 95% of these respond
to over the counter antifungal medications that usually contain
2% miconazole nitrate. Surprised it didn't get worse with the
topical steroid. Powder covered with ointment(to prevent
washing off with urination) or ointment based antifungal applied
daily and with each diaper change will usually resolve condition
in adults in 2-3 weeks. If not or worsens, you should see a
dermatologist.
Anon
When my daughter was an infant she had a pretty bad diaper rash
a couple of times that necessitated using lotrimin combined with
hydrocortizone cream. We also cut out wipes just using viva
paper towels (as recommended by the advice nurse)and water.
This worked extremely well to clear up the rash and made my
daughter much more comfortable. Good luck.
Hannah
Our daughter had a long standing and very red diaper rash last
summer and we tried everything. THe lotrimin (we used the
generic - clotrimazole) was the only thing that worked and it
worked so well and so quickly. This winter she had another
very severe rash and again the lotrimin was the only thing that
worked. I am not aware of any negative side effects of
lotrimin and it certainly was what healed our daughter's
bottom.
Liz O.
It might be worth trying the lotrimin cream. If your daughter's rash is
caused by yeast (a very common thing in young babies, especially if
they've ever had an antibiotic -- my 20 month old son has had this
happen several times -- although I don't think antibiotic is the only
cause) none of the other treatments you describe will have much efffect.
Only a medication targeted to yeast, such as lotrimin, will help. This is
probably wny your pediatrician wants to try it. And I don't believe it will
hurt the baby, so I don't think your reluctance is warranted.
Karen
A simple remedy that a midwife told me - it's worked wonders
for my very rash-prone children.
Sprinkle some corn starch in the diaper when you change it -
dust it over the diaper area too. A small handful - just let
the powder go all over the place! Also, only use water to
change the diaper, not any cream or lotion or baby wipes. They
can cause the rash. After washing with cotton balls, gently
dry, and then sprinkle this corn starch powder on.
It worked well for us. And nothing else did!
(Incidentally it also worked for the eczema I had on my hands
for fifteen years.)
Janice
Jan 2002
Though we're long out of diapers, I used to use 3 things for diaper rash.
Desitin was a great protection against further rash and the fish oil soothed
the rashey skiin. Also vitamin E, but the best is probably air. Can be a bit
messy at times, but letting them run around bare tushed I found to be the
best healer of diaper rash. There are lots of homeopathic ointments too.
Calendula is really good. Some kids are more sensitive and get rashes really
easily. Diligence doesn't always work. Good luck.
I recommend squirting a little breast milk on the rash
and air dry with each diaper change. All those
antibodies are great for the skin. It will probably
look better in a couple of days.
katie
I whole heartedly recommend calendula lotion by Weleda. My daughter
had a severe rash early on for about three weeks, and no amount of
Desitin would help. We used the calendula by Weleda, and in less than
24 hours the rash was gone. Good luck!
scott
Our doctor got us started on a miracle ointment. It
is called flanders buttocks ointment. It completely
clears up even the worst rashes my son had in one to
three tries. It is our miracle ointment. It doesn't
smell great, but it works. We couldn't find it
anywhere around Berkeley, but got it on the web, under
yahoo shopping. I definately recommend it to all who
are having a problem with rashes.
kristi
For us Weleda is a dream diaper ointment.
Every time we've used it, it soothes our
child instantly and the rash is gone in
a day. It is a natural ointment and you
can buy it at Whole Foods or on-line at
Drugstore.com (it's cheaper on-line).
Good luck!!!
lori
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