OT -- Severe Baby Acne in 3 Month Old

[tartemis]

Hi, all. Everyone on here seems to have a wealth of knowledge so I thought I might see if I can tap into that with my problem.

I have a wonderful 3-month old girl, who unfortuantely has severe baby acne. I'm talking so severe that it oozes, crusts and is extremely dry. She developed it when she was around 1 month old. At her 1 month old appointment her pediatrician said that it may get a little worse but should peak around 6 to 8 weeks. At her 2 month old check-up, he said that she was a little old to have it still, but that it wasn't uncommon to have it at that age and that she would outgrow it. He also said that we should just leave it alone and only use moisturizer (like Aquaphor) on the really dry portions.

Well, she turned 3 months last week. At first it looked like it was going to get better, and the surface area of the acne decreased, but the severity increased -- it started oozes and cracking more. We spoke to our pediatrician by phone and he said to put polysporin on it twice a day (to keep it from getting infected) and continue to use the moisturizer as necessary but again stated that she will just grow out of it.

I think on Monday I'm going to demand that she get seen by the peditrician again in case he isn't realizing how bad it still is, but I was also wondering if anybody else has gone through this and, if yes, if you have any treatments/products that worked for your little one. I know they claim that it doesn't "bother" the baby, but it looks really painful and really, how do they know if it bothers the baby or not?

My first daughter had the typical baby acne for a few weeks and then it cleared up. This is WAY worse.

Thanks!

 

[Keri]

You should consider taking milk out of her (or your) diet. I read this in Dr. Sears' Baby Book when my DS was an infant & his baby acne got worse and spread to his scalp and chest between 6 & 8 weeks when everything I was reading said it should be getting better. His book said if it started to get worse or spread, it could be a dairy issue. I was breastfeeding, so I eliminated most milk from my diet (I had been living on a few bowls of cereal with milk a day) and it started to clear up pretty quickly. And, when he was tested when he got a little older, he did have severe food allergies to milk (since outgrown, thankfully), eggs & peanuts.

As for treatment ... aquaphor can help, but it certainly isn't a cure-all. Hopefully you can figure it out soon!

 

[mjkacmom]

For skin related issues, I bypass the pediatrician and go right to a dermatalogist.

 

[tartemis]

You should consider taking milk out of her (or your) diet. I read this in Dr. Sears' Baby Book when my DS was an infant & his baby acne got worse and spread to his scalp and chest between 6 & 8 weeks when everything I was reading said it should be getting better. His book said if it started to get worse or spread, it could be a dairy issue. I was breadtfeeding, so I eliminated most milk from my diet (I had been living on a few bowls of cereal with milk a day) and it started to clear up pretty quickly. And, when he was tested when he got a little older, he did have severe food allergies to milk (since outgrown, thankfully), eggs & peanuts.

As for treatment ... aquaphor can help, but it certainly isn't a cure-all. Hopefully you can figure it out soon!

Yeah, a lactation consultant suggested that so I tried eliminating all dairy and soy (including hidden sources) for 2 weeks and it didn't get any better. (That was a fun 2 weeks and I have a new found appreciation for those that have had do to it for much longer.) Also, it is only on her face and my doctor said that if it were some sort of allergy that it would have spread to other parts of her body.

 

[tartemis]

For skin related issues, I bypass the pediatrician and go right to a dermatalogist.

I was wondering about that -- I have a great dermatologist (who is also a mom) but I wasn't sure what the protocol was for things like this -- i.e., if this is considered a pediatrician issue and not a dermatologist issue. I will give her a call on Monday as well.

 

[happymommy]

As I started reading your post, it immediately sounded like my son! And yet, the first reply is the same story as well!

I would immediately get to a pediatric allergist. My son had severe eczema, oozing and cracking. Turned out, it was related to his food allergies. I didn't know the correlation, and he had anaphylaxis from a tiny amount of milk when we started him on food (8 months). He tested positive at that time to milk, eggs, peanuts, and sesame.

Eczema is related to allergies and asthma, so I would definitely not delay in getting into an allergist.

We would put a tiny (half teaspoon) bit of bleach into his bath water, to make sure that there were no germs. We lived in a very humid climate his first year (Hawaii), so a bath at least once or even twice a day helped him. Then we slathered lotion on him, and he also had some steriod creams for his cheeks (but be careful with those, and use the least amount and strength you can). Also, we tried to avoid any fragrances in his laundry.

His eczema cleared up by one or two, but got very bad when he was about 18 months and we moved to Maryland. He was subject to cold winter, and it was rough. Then we didn't bathe him as frequently, as his skin was super dry.

Definitely get some allergy tests done asap! Good luck!

 

[indimom]

This sounds very similar to my son's problem as an infant and it was eczema also. It crusted, oozed and he dug and scratched at it making it bleed more. The only thing that "helped" (a little bit) was making sure he was well cleaned after a feeding (any residue left after a feeding was guarranteed to cause a flair-up), using perfume and dye free soaps, and providing a barrier between his skin and anyone who wanted to hold him. (He would break out every time he lay against someone else's shoulder). We would provide one of our baby blankets washed in dye and perfume free infant laundry detergent when someone wanted to hold him. We also washed the entire family's laundry in this detergent (pricey, but necessary).
The steroid creams gave immediate relief and still do, but we only use them when it gets VERY bad as steroids have side effects also. Aquaphor, cetaphil and similar over-the-counter cleansers are helpful. Do NOT use lotion as they nearly all contain alcohol which further dries the skin.
This does need to be treated. "Open wounds" such as this increase your baby's chance of a secondary infection (which happened to our son) and some of these are even more difficult to treat.
Our son's condition has improved dramatically over the years and he now only has flair ups in the winter months, usually at his elbows and behind his knees.

 

[skw444]

I agree with the PP about seeing a pediatric allergist. My dd had severe eczema with the oozing and crusting. Turns out she had an allergy to milk. Once we figured that out, the eczema cleared up a lot, but didn't totally go away. She is now 7 and still has flare ups...usually in the winter when her skin is dry. She's been diagnosed with asthma and a nut allergy too, but she did outgrow her milk allergy.

 

[viviensmama]

Yeah, a lactation consultant suggested that so I tried eliminating all dairy and soy (including hidden sources) for 2 weeks and it didn't get any better. (That was a fun 2 weeks and I have a new found appreciation for those that have had do to it for much longer.) Also, it is only on her face and my doctor said that if it were some sort of allergy that it would have spread to other parts of her body.

Just wanted to let you know it *could* still be a milk allergy. It takes something like 6 weeks for milk proteins to clear out of the body! We had a similar situation with my daughter and it took at least a month to see any improvement in her skin. Hers was mainly restricted to her face but still turned out to be allergies. Figured it might be worth a shot!

 

[allyphoe]

My DD had that (and it was only on her face), and for her, it was eczema. Turned out to be a cow's milk protein allergy.

We lucked out that it only took a week or so of elimination before hers cleared up, but I will second those who said up to 6 weeks. Also, completely eliminating even traces of cow's milk is hard. There's a lot of hidden dairy, so unless you have complete control over your diet, it's hard to be sure.

 

[Mathfailure]

I agree with all the above about eczema.

My daughter's skin became raw, weepy and hurt. The regular ped. was not helping, and kept dismissing it. Over a year of this nonsense I took her to an allergist and immediately was given the proper medicine and salve, cleared in less than one week. Needless to say I was furious.

 

[tartemis]

Thanks for all of the replies. I feel like a horrible mother now that I haven't done anything more active. I just kept listening to the ped that she would outgrow it (and maybe she will) but it seems to be getting worse, not better. I am going to get on the phone first thing in the morning to see what doctor I can get her in the soonest.

After giving her a bath tonight, I noticed that she does have the rash on her back, too. Interestingly, she has none of it on her front side and her diaper area looks pristine. I think it may be excema because it seems like the rash is appearing on areas that she rubs frequently (like her face and her back since she rolls around in her sleep) and is not on the other areas.

Maybe I will cut back on my dairy and see if that helps, too. When I gave it up before she was only around 6 weeks, so maybe I need to try again.

 

[duckybelle]

PLEASE see a specialist! We went through something like this with my dd (now 16) at that age. Told us repeatedly it was baby acne, and it wasnt.
She was a VERY rare case, but had a disease called Omen Syndrome. We went through chemo and bone marrow transplants at the same age. NOT AT ALL saying this is what it is, as it does sound like allergies, but a specialist would be able to tell you more.

 

[mjkacmom]

We battled eczema with 4 of our children, some as infants, some as toddlers, and a couple still have it seasonally. We've tried many medications, and it's hit or miss, and what works for one might not work for another. My ds6 had it the worst as an infant - he was red, top to bottom. Ironically, he's completely outgrown it, while his siblings still have flare-ups. Just want to let you know that your first prescription might not work - keep trying.

 

[Keri]

DO NOT feel like a bad mom. I was the same way -- the ped kept saying "it'll go away, don't worry" -- if I hadn't had that book, I would have never suspected that, and I would have waited a few more weeks before I thought to go to anyone else. (I'm also the moron who thought surely he'd outgrown whatever sensitivity he had & gave him food with dairy products in it when he started eating solids Brilliant, mom! Also, once his allergy did get better and he was able to eat cheese & ice cream & yogurt without hives and tested negative, I tried straight milk with him & though it didn't cause a physical reaction, it did cause some behavior issues that cleared up again once I went back to soy. That was when he was 4 or 5. He's now 6.5 and fine with milk, though he doesn't like the taste so he only drinks it if it has chocolate )

 

[jaleaton]

My baby had bad baby acne (not as bad as what it sounds like your little one has), and we used Cetaphil soap on it at a pharmacists recommendation. That stuff worked wonders. In fact, we still use it, and don't even use the Johnson's Baby Soap anymore. Our baby also seemed to get really greasy hair with the Johnson's Soap, and doesn't look greasy using the Cetaphil, which we wash her hair with too.

Hopefully you find something to work for your baby.

 

[wmharley]

we had this on our baby.. we use California Baby on him and he got better.

he's only had one rash since we used it (over a yr now) that was only on the front of his body (we think it was due to detergent from some donated clothes from a friend). For that one we put hydrocortisone, but it was his body.

You can find California Baby at Target, and here, at Publix.

 

[tartemis]

OP here -- I was able to get in to see our pediatrician today and he said that it did look like it could be infected, but that he wanted us to try and use .1% hydrocortisone in addition to neosporin (we were using polysporin, but he said that he likes neosporin better) and the aquaphor for the next 72 to 96 hours to see if it would get better without resorting to oral antibiotics (because she is so young).

I also was able to get an appointment with my dermatologist who also sees peds for Thursday. I figure we will follow our peds advice until Thursday and then get a second opinion from the dermatologist. Maybe it will even be cleared by Thursday so I can cancel that appointment (you can't fault a girl for being optimistic, right)?

I'm sorry that others have had to go through this, but its nice to hear from others who have been through it and had it eventually clear.

I should have insisted that she be seen by the doctor last week.

 

[happymommy]

Still, I'd get an allergy test.

 

[tartemis]

Still, I'd get an allergy test.

My pediatrician said that they won't do allergy testing before 6 months old -- and even then they do it in only extreme cases. I will see what my dermatologist says about that.

From experience with my oldest daughter, I do also know that it takes months to get into an allergist here. We thought our eldest might have had an oat allergy, but whatever it was she outgrew it by 1 year. (We never did end up getting her in to see an allergist.)