Cortisone for Seborreheic Dermititus?

My daughter had the same thing. I took her to her pediatrician and my dermatologist. Her case was very severe and lasted at least 3 months. They said it was a "medical student" case. I did use the cortisone cream (the pediatrician told me it was Ok). She also told me it would go away on its own if I waited. It was horrible but it did go away.

My daughter had what sounds like a similar problem and her face would get so bad it would bleed- I decided it was the beach they used in the hospital, so I stopped using bleach and switched to Dreft- It went away but I do not know if it is the same thing.

My son had skin problems at the same age. His pediatrician didn't tell me what it was called, but she recommended I use fragrance free Dove soap. Those baby soaps like Grins N Giggles are sooooo drying for baby's skin. When their face gets dry, they produce too much oil to compensate and that's where the bumps come from. She also told me to use hydro cortisone cream (.1%). That combination was a miracle!!! It only took a day to see a difference. Well, hope this helps! Good luck!

I'm a Registered Medical Assistant who, before I became a stay at home mom, worked at a Dermatology office for almost 10 years as a nurse. I've seen sooooo much of this it's crazy. Cortisone cream is safe to use, however, you only want to use it for about 2 weeks at a time and give your baby's skin a break in between. The cortisone cream can over time thin the skin and make the skin more apt to infections and more red skin in the end. Usually only use it 2 weeks on 2 weeks off and so forth. I as a mom with the same problems with my son, don't like to use it. I like to use vasaline directly after showering and hypoallergenic lotions. Yes changing your laundry soap is good, but not effective if you are still using dryer sheets or fabric softener, or perfumes in your own clothes. Remember what you wear your baby touches too, as well as blankets etc.... The same goes for your hand soaps, shampoos, nail polish, makeup, and I could go on and on. All these harsh elements can make your baby's condition worse as well. I have changed all my soaps, shampoos nail polish, etc.. to less harsh items (Dove soaps, shampoos, lotions like cetaphil, or dove) All the items I use for me and my babies now are Arbonne items that I love and have had no problems with my son since, they are all natural and have no harsh chemicals or perfumes. If you are going to change those things around you can't just start changing them unless you re-wash and start fresh with everthing in your home that could make it all worse. It's a long long process, but always well worth it in the end. Over time I have gradually started bringing back some of my favorite soaps and things, and have found that only some of those things caused problems with my son, you can over time still use the things you love, it just takes patience. Good luck and if you have any other questions please ask.

This is exactly what happened to my son. He had that red rash that started on his face then it ended up every where else. The Dr. would tell me to wash him with Ivory soap, and I did what he said and felt terrible because he was screaming....that didnt help at all. Well my mom had these rashes due to food allergies which we found out when he was 11 months. I took him to an allergist and they did the stamp test on his back and he was allergic to everything....wheat, dairy, soy, nuts, berries, eggs, citrus...everything...including dust mites and grass. What was strange was that I nursed him until he saw the allergist and his Dr. kept saying there was no possible way the baby could be allergic to my breastmilk. So after the allergist, we put him on Nutramigen and he did a little better. But as it was time to stop the bottle he was red all over again... the Dr. told me to use Aquaphor which was terrible for him...we did the cortisone and that didnt work... We couldnt find anything to help his rash until he was about 3, this lady told me to go to a Mexican Pharmacy and try this cream called Quadriderm. So once I bought it I took it to the new pediatrician and she read the ingredients and told me to try it, but use very little because it had a lot of steriod in it. I used this cream on his little hands which were red and cracked and believe it or not, it cleared up. It had a antifungal, antibacterial, and something else...but it took care of it in one use. Maybe you can ask the baby Dr. if there is any thing safer, but similar to use than Quadriderm, but that really worked for him.

K.,

My son is allergic to both dairy and soy and has had similar problems. He was breastfed so I had to totally eliminate dairy and soy from my diet - even dairy and soy hidden in foods like baked goods. If you are using formula that obviously isn't an option but they do have hypoallergenic formulas. My son is 18 months now and he still can't have dairy or soy so he drinks Similac Alimentum (you get it in the grocery store or you can order it on-line by the case). There are different levels of hypoallergenic. If she still reacts to the Alimentum, your next option would be to special order Neocate or Elecare formula. You can get it on-line or through a pharmacy. It isn't unusual at all for a baby to be allergic to soy if they are allergic to dairy. The proteins are very similar in structure. My son is also allergic to goats milk (everyone kept telling me to try goats milk but that protein is very similar also and my son can't tolerate it either).

In my experience, pediatricians (and even my pediatric GI doctor) are a horrible source of information on food allergies and intolerances in babies. We narrowed down my son's problems through me doing a strict elimination diet (he also didn't tolerate eggs for the longest time but now he's fine with them). Fortunately you can find plenty of info on food intolerances on the web. One good resource is www.kellymom.com. It is primarily a breastfeeding resource but there is lots of good info out there on other topics.

From what I've read, these types of problems are almost always diet and food intolerance related. And for obvious reasons, it is a lot healthier if you can eliminate the problem instead of just trying to treat the rash.

Good luck!
T.

Try breast milk. It clears up everything.

Good luck.

Hi K. C.

My son had same thing. We used calendula cream from Whole Foods (California Baby brand...about 11 bucks a jar). I've also used breastmilk on his rashes and that worked, too. I know it sounds crazy, but my friend from La Leche told me it works for pink-eye, rashes, etc...I've used it on both and it works for both! Too bad they don't sell THAT at the store! :) Good luck with your pediatrician appointment.

Hello K.,
Congratulations on your new baby! Regarding the rash: Rashes can be indicators of many many things and are really hard to diagnose just online or over the phone. Babies often get rashes after birth just because of all of the waxy material that they are covered with while in the womb. I have heard of rashes because of microbial things that have been ingested, particularly with formulas. Most people don't wash off the formula container before they open it for the first time...Who knows what's on the outside of those containers, or the water bottles for that matter. I have seen these rashes progress to something looking like chicken pox and I have seen them just go away on their own.
Your best bet with a rash is to see the doctor...If they are unresponsive to your concerns, get assertive, if still no response, get another doctor! Your children are more important than that Doctor's feelings and your concerns should be properly addressed. Even if it's to "show" you what is going on so you stop worrying. As for cortisones and babies...not a great idea unless your doctor has recommended it. We absorb so much through our skin. Their little bodies cannot metabolize and eliminate toxins and chemicals like those of adults or larger children. I advise, no cortisones

DO NOT GIVE THE OVER THE COUNTER CORTISONE TO YOUR 7 WEEK OLD!!!
It's too strong a concentration and can thin her skin. My baby also had it at a young age, but here's the thing...you need to go see a baby dermatologist. That's what we did. Turns out it she also had eczema which is common in infants and that they eventually grow out of. My baby was suffering from all of the itching which is why we ended up at the dermatologist. It also turned out that she had some food allergies as well that came through to her in my breast milk and then later on when she started on solids.
She prescribed a milder cortisone cream (you need a written prescription for it) and we only used it for short periods of time under her advicement. Her name is Dr. Mavis Billips and she has offices in Long Beach and West Hollywood at Cedars Medical Center. (877) 451-7546 The allergist that we went to is Dr. Robert Eitches, also at Cedars Medical Center.
Also, from past experience I wouldn't try and self diagnose your child over the internet. There are a lot of things that look like one thing but turn out being something else.
Hope all of this helps and that your baby's skin gets better. I know how it is to see your baby suffering. Be well. much peace and light

Try feeding her breastmilk, if possible--babies are *rarely* allergic to that. Also, I hear that homeopathic remedies are the best for skin disorders.

Use SHIKAI Borage Dry Skin Therapy Lotion. You can find it at ShiKai.com. My son uses this morning and night and has beautiful skin because of it. He had the worst case of eczema our pediatrician had ever seen and was almost hospitalized with skin infections - it was that bad. Like you, I did not want to use "steroid" creams on my son and those seemed to be the only ones available from our dermatologist. I searched for over six months trying all sorts of natural remedies. This lotion was our miracle. I've since recommended it to so many families and all have reported great results. My pediatrician even recommends it to his patients families because of the results he saw with my son. I did use the steroid creams in order to get rid of the "raw" skin condition (this should not take more than 3 days) and then began using this lotion to maintain his healthy skin. I'm happy to report that he has not had even the slightest breakout in almost 2 years. Good luck to you.

All my kids had it to some degree. My youngest had it really bad, that is would actually 'weep'. We used the cream like the doctor said, and it cleared up really fast. You don't need to use a lot, and you don't have to put it on that often either. Once in the evening right after a bath should be fine.
Also, look into the kind of chemicals you are using around your house. My oldest has eczema (sp), and I started using natural products this past week. I even bought her own little lotion, and I am seeing an improvement on her arms already.

Good luck with this!

I would bring her back to the doc and ask him about what condition you believe your daughter has. She is WAY too young to be messing around with stuff. You know what I mean?

Hi K.,

My son has a similar condition on his face, mainly the cheeks. He is 8 weeks old and my 4 year old daughter had it as well. The best thing to do for this is just to use a soft wash cloth (of course laundered in baby detergent or other fragrance free detergent for sensitive skin) wet with warm water. Do this several times a day making sure to keep this area clean. Try not to rub with the cloth, just use a blotting, maybe softly wiping motion. If you do this consistently, it should help. The skin will remain pretty dry and may feel a little rough or begin to peel. DO NOT pick at it and try to limit touching this area of baby's face as much as possible. Baby will grow out of this condition usually within 4 months or so. My doctor said that lotions and creams will only make this condition worse as the skin is cracked in these areas and is not good for newborn's sensitive skin.

In response to the question about cortisone, my daughter had eczema which the doctor said I could use on her after she was about 6 months old but in true moderation as this can cause light spots on the skin or abnormal pigmentation.

My husband and my step-daughter both have excema and use a steroidal cream on their skin. My step-daughter was very young when I first met her and the rule for issues like that seems to be - work it [rub it] into the skin until it is absorbed so that it cannot possibly be transferred elsewhere such as the mouth, eyes, etc... If she has what you believe it to be, it should clear up progressively over a period of probably a week. Each day a little bit better. If not, go back to the dr. Good luck and God Bless You!

I am a mother of four, 2 girls and 2 boys. One of my daughters and both of my sons have eczema, my boys are worse off than my daughter, and my youngest son is 3 months old now and I use cortizone ointment/creme on his face, arms, legs, tummy and back when it was severely red, and itchy. Once it started to look better, I used Eucerin lotion at least 3 times a day all of their bodies. I also started using Dove body wash on all my kids. For my daughter it's been 100% better, and she's one. My older son had food allergies until about 2 years old, he could not have any dairy or wheat products, I also switched his formual from Enfamil Lipil to Enfamil Soy, then finally settling with Nutramigen, which is very, very expensive, and smells so bad, but what a difference it made with helping his skin clear up. My baby boy who is 3 months has had Seborrheic Dermatitis since he was about 2 weeks old, and it caused scaling and redness all over his head, I used Selsun Blue once everyday for a week, then once a week after that, it has cleared up his head so much, but my doctor said the scaling could last as long as up to 12 months, but it has helped tremendously with the itchiness, and especially the scaling. I can definitely say that using Dove and Eucerin religiously has helped to keep my kids skin looking soft and smooth, personally using the cortizone only helped to relieve my kids' itchy skin, and then applying the Eucerin lotion kept the redness away. If I even missed one day, there would be red and dry patches all over their body. Good luck and I hope his helps.

Full-Time working mother of 2 beautiful girls and 2 handsome boys

Not this specific condition. But, my daughter had a skin rash and the ped suggestions weren't taking care of the problem. I took her to a dermatologist (didn't need a referral) and got a scrip which took care of it. voila! Go see a dermatologist instead of self-treating. 7 weeks is awfully young to be experimenting.

K.,
My little girl got the same windburned look at around 3 mos. I was worried at first but she just never seemed to be bothered by it, no itching or distress. I just stopped putting anything on her face (soap, wipes, etc.) and the pediatrician recommended using either aquiphor (spelling) or eucerine. I also used a little bit of coconut oil from the health food store it is naturally healing. I thought about using cortisone but didn't want to risk the steriod thing. I think it bothered me more than her. It just gradually went away. Stay calm, it's probably just a fluxuation in her little hormome levels or something. Good luck.

K.,

First, let me congratulate you on your new arrival. Being a new mom again after such a long time can make you paranoid about the new baby. I know that was how I was in your situation. The babies were so different and I felt like I had never had a baby before.

The first thing that comes to mind about that rash is that it may just be hormones. Frequently newborns get a rash on their face from the change in hormones working their way out of the body. That kind of a rash usually only last a few weeks. A couple of my kids had this....looked like they had pimples. Don't fret...keep it clean and dry and give it time. See your doctor if you have serious concerns. Another thing that comes to my mind is that the rash may be an extension of "cradle cap." My #3 child had persistent cradle cap....every time I thought it was gone, it would reappear. She even had some little rash spots on her cheeks and around her ears. I used to put the same cream on the rash spots and the cradle cap...it all finally went away at the same time. I can't remember the brand of the cream...but it said, "Baby Eczema". It can be found in most pharmacies and some grocery stores in with the baby stuff. It is a beige tube with a light blue (I think) cap and writing. It is very good stuff. The same brand seems to always have a diaper rash formula right next to it.

My pediatrician said I could use a little cortisone on my baby's forehead (she's three weeks) and eyebrow area. What she had, though, was dermatitis caused by cradle cap (I suppose it would be the same thing). When cradle cap moves down from the scalp, it is called seborrheic dermatitis. Their first step is to treat the cradle cap in my case, but hers was severe, so we used just a bit of cortisone as well. She cautioned not to use too much as it could thin the skin. I think I used it three times only.

A more natural route would be calendula cream. Also, if you're breast feeding you could take probiotics, and if you give her a bottle, you could give her some probiotics (or put a bit on your breast). I started on it for my baby's tummy issues and it cleared up the dermatitis. Florastor Kids is what my GI gave me and it seemed to work wonders. That might even help if by some chance it's not dermatitis and some allergen.

Good luck, I hope something you find here works for her precious skin.

Go on-line to toosheabutter.com and purchase thier 100% Shea Butter. You will be amazed at what it will do and it is 100% natural. I have psoriasis on my arms and in three days it was 90% better. It only takes a few days to recieve it with regular shipping. The butter is very thick. The way to use it is to put a chunk in the palm of your hand. Rub your two palms together until the butter is no longer gritty and is smooth. Rub the butter on the affected area. I use it on my face, directly on my eyes and on my lips. This will not hurt your infant. No harm in trying and I believe you will be happy with the results. It also has a natural anti-inflamatory in it for the rash swelling. Can't hurt to try. Good Luck.

my son has severe eczema (sp?)and the only thing that helps him his hydrocortisone. I talked to his doctor and he said he didn't like that, and gave me Elidel and that did nothing, plus has these potentially awful side effects as well. So he said to use the hydrocortisone when necessary...I have to use it now about once a week and he is good. He is almost two, but it took us a good year to figure out what was wrong with his skin and find something that worked. Good luck!

A friend's daughter had this. It looked kind of awful and bright red, but the pediatrician said to just leave it alone- and that it would go away. Sure enough, one day around six months, it was gone.
S.

I would go see a dermatologist. You don't want to self-diagnose and get advice from the internet and have it be wrong. These things are fairly common in kids, so I'm sure it's treatable with a cream. But you want to make sure it's the right cream.

My daughter had this on her cheeks and chin, where it sometines looked so thin that you could see through it. I tried useing cortisone but that didn't take it away, I think we used it for almost a year then the doctor gave us some samples of cream to use, it toke it right away. They were tiny tubes about the lengh of 1 to 1 1/2 inches, like a tube of toothpaste. Now that she is older Eucerine cream helps her with the sores she gets around her mouth, I believe those are from druelling in the night. But sometimes she gets these dry patches and Eucerine cream helps with that. Sorry I can't remember the name of the medicine. Good Luck! J.

Hello K.,

I am a wellness coach and represent some amazing nature based botanical products. I also am a grandma! I have some basic essential soap filled with therapeutic essential oils, bergamont, tea tree and it is very calming to the skin. You can purchase a bar at my site and then add the biocream for moisturizer.

Just use this and watch your baby's skin improve. We always help with Warm Spirit and our products have a guarantee. Here is my site: www.warmspirit.org/wellbody

You can order what you like and it will be shipped directly to you. The basic soap also comes in liquid form. Item codes:

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Basic Essential Liquid Soap E153 $18

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If you'd like to talk call my cell at ###-###-####

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Warm Spirit

I don't know if it's the same thing, but my children had ecxema as babies - it sounds like the same thing. I did the following and it made a big difference:
1) use soap sparingly
2) dress them in 100% cotton
3) put plenty of lotion on them right after a bath - use a lotion specifically for ecxema
4) use cleaning products without dyes or perfumes

Good luck!

Hi K.,

Cortisone is not the best thing for anyones skin let alone an infants. I have battled rashes and eczema most of my life until I found that real culprit that made my skin so sore, red, and itchy. It was the toxic chemicals in the cleaner I was using to clean my house and laundry. Once I switched to non-toxic, eco-friendly cleaners, and natural creams that didn't have stuff like formayldehyde in them, my skin healed up in less then two weeks. The industry uses formayldehyde and has about 50 names for it to disguise it's use. Check your labels out and see if it says Quaterium-15. It's been in Johnson and Johnson Baby Shampoo and a whole bunch of other products as well. Those fillers you see in your laundry soap that makes bubbles so you feel your really washing your clothes does nothing more then to settle back on the fabric and then we lay on it all night, letting it touch our skin and getting those negative chemicals into our bloodstream. We breathe it in and absorb it through our skin. Then we get up from our toxic sheets and blankets and put toxic clothes on ourselves and our little ones. Beside getting rid of my eczema and lifelong skin problems, I got rid of my asthma too. My youngest who had ADHD no longer seemed to have the learning problems because he could settle down and focus in class. Why are all these types of problems happening so often? Since WW2 we have brought over 50 different poisons into our homes and used them to clean with on a daily basis. Our homes are so energy efficient that nothing gets out of our homes once they're released inside. This toxic cleaners dry-up and flake off and settle in the carpet where we kick it up by walking on it. Our kids and animals play on the carpet and get to breathe it into their systems along with obsorbing the toxins through the skin. Email me with you name and number if you would like me to share the products I use with you.
Good Luck F. ____@____.com

i am a mom of four, and my second son had this. It goes away after a few months. We took him to his pediatrician, concerned about the rash on our beautiful newborn's face. The doctor was completely unconcerned, said it was very common. He suggested T-gel shampoo, and other than that, he told us to leave it alone and not to try to treat it on our own. He said it would eventually go away. And it did. :0)

Just wanted to mention that she could still have an allergy to formula. My son is allergic to both Milk based and Soy based formulas. There are hypo-allergenic formulas you can try. Alimentum (by Similac) or Nutramigen (by Enfamil).
Also, I use cortisone on my infant, but was instructed not to use it on his face. I just lather him up with Eucerin creme.

I highly recommend Arbonne's Baby Care line. Very gentle, non-irritating, non-sensitizing. Their diaper cream is the only one that doesn't make my daughter wail in pain, and their baby wash doesn't make her eyes all red like J&J did.

I've heard the product line works great for people with eczema and dermatitis, and I have seen amazing before-and-afters of babies who went from bright-red faced to healthy-peachy faced.

Check out product testimonials by following the link below.
https://www.arbonne.com/company/opportunity/people/testim...

You can purchase through the website, or I can mail you samples if you'd like to try it out first. Let's get your little sweetie better!

We just started using hydrocortisone cream for my 6 month old son who had a red patch on his cheek and a scaly spot on his scalp. I thought the one on his cheek was just infant acne but it never went away. The doctor said it could be some type of dermititis and prescribed it. We only used it twice and BOTH areas have basically gone away. The instructions say to use it "sparingly" and I've been told that hydrocortisone cream should not be used long term (i.e. it is a type of steriod and I believe it starts to thin the skin) but it worked for us so far. Also, the doctor said NOT to use it around his mouth.

Hope this helps.

My son had the 'wind burn' look on his cheeks until he was about 10 months old. One day he woke up and it looked better, the next day the same thing, until one day it was gone and never came back. I just used Aquafor for sensitive skin to keep his skin moisturized. The dr. said it would just go away and it did. He never seemed bothered by it, nor did it itch.

Dear K.;
i think that you should take your little girl to a dermatologyst they take care of skin problems. By guessing her condition and treating her with creams you my do more harm that good so that is why you should take her to the dermatologyst. Good luck and god bless you.

Anna l.

The same thing happened to my son around Thanksgiving. I did fiqure out that it was the laundry soap. It had started out really red like a rash, then it started to chap and peel. It looked just like a wind burn. I'm a mother of 3 boys and this had never happened with my older boys. When my sister-in-law saw him on Thanksgiving she said my nephew would get like that and she would put the
cortisone cream on it. We did get some that day and it did work, by the end of the night it looked so much better. When I spoke to the doctor he said it was fine to use on him but not to go overboard with it, a little bit wouldn't hurt. My son was 5 mths old when this happened, you still might want to check with your doctor first. Good Luck!

Be careful!!! There are so many varieties of skin conditions that have VERY similar symptoms. Steroid creams are more harsh than you think, and actually ended up creating a problem on my face(which was wrongfully diagnosed as seborrehic dermatitis). I'm a mom, but this actually happened to me. So, kid's skin is different, but just to give you some info on my story, I never had skin problems (acne, sensitivity, etc...) growing up. I had a baby, who I breastfed for a year and a half, and when he finally weaned himself, I all of a sudden got some wierd rash on my face. For years I tried to control it with advice from different people. I started using a steroid cream, which initially seemed to work. I would put it on, and the rash would clear. Then a few days later, it would be back, and usually worse. After 3 dermatologists, I figured out I had perioral dermatitis, which is actually aggrivated by steroid creams and uv light ( both of which were part of my treatment, per doctors). So just be careful and be thourough. And look it up on the internet. Thank goodness for the internet these days, huh?.....

I was using cortisone on my son for what we thought was ezcema but after I found out that it is a steroid and that it can change the color of their pigment I stopped using immediately. I use aquaphor for babies and that has helped...he not longer has anything. I also has a girl (they are 20 week old twins) that drools excessively and since she has been rolling over to sleep on her belly she has been chapping her face (she drools a ton). I use it on her face as well, once in the morning and once at night. It has been working wonderfully and best of all it is just a vaseline type lotion...not medicines involved.
Hope this helps.

Hi K.,

My youngest son (I have 2 boys) has a really bad case of ecsema, sometimes I think it's sebborheic dermatitis too but his doctor says it's just a really bad case of ecsema. I have been using something called Triamcinolone Acetonide Cream which was prescribed by Dr. since he a few months old. It works really well when combined with only using Aveeno baby bath and Aveeno lotion (the one w/ a dark blue cap). It really keeps it under control and you will see a visible difference within days. Ask her pediatrician about it because it worked wonders for my son! Good luck!

My son has rashes on his face and when I took him for his check up the doctor prescribed 2.5% hydrocortizone and it did help. At first he suggested just using Cetaphil lotion but when that didn't help that's when he prescribe the hydrocortizone. You can get 1% over the counter so it's worth a try. If you are really hesitant with giving steriod based you can also try "California Baby Calendula cream". That seems to help too. It really depends on the baby. Unfortunately you can only find the cream either online or at a Whole Food store. Hope this helps.

My 4 month old son had it soon after he was born and my 2 1/2 yr old daughter had it when she was an infant too. My pediatrician said it was okay to use the OTC 1% hydrocortisone cream. I used a tiny, tiny bit where ever he needed it and it cleared up very quickly. The pediatrician said it was safe.

Our son had baby acne pretty bad and our doctor prescribed 1% hydrocortisone on his face, but said the gel would be better, not the cream. She said because it was on his face, she wanted the lesser percentage and the gel as it would be less likely to get into his mouth or nose at all. It cleared him right up, but I'd get confirmation from your doctor before putting something like that on it.

When our little ones had Ecema we used Elidel which doesn't have cotisone in it. Steroid cream thin the skin and has other side effects. For a short amount of time they are usually safe.

For the type or rash that babies get under their chin from drool, or other body rash you may want to try aquafore. Also you may not want to use soap daily when you wash your baby.

Good luck-
L.

I too had that with my youngest son. I took him to a number of dermatologists. They all agreed that it was okay to put on some cortisone cream, however it was a prescribed one. I had to use it sparingly but it made all the difference in the world. It cleared up the rash AND he was just so much more comfortable. Good luck!
D.

Both my kids have very dry skin and sometimes when they were younger their cheeks looked terrible. I used products from Weleda. You can get them at Whole Foods. They have one cream for diaper rash and a fabulous calendula based cream for face and body as well as calendula oil. All of them are awesome.

Good luck.

P. S.: They are kind of pricey but worth every penny.

The percent number on the steroid doesn't mean anything. What matters is the type of steroid cream. One steroid drug at 1% can be twice as strong as another steroid drug at 2%. The percentage is just how much of the cream is drug. What you want is a steroid drug that is safe for babies. There are very few, but a pediatric dermatologist can give you a prescription for the safest ones. Just know that nothing is 100% safe, so you should only use it if absolutely necessary, and then use the smallest amount possible that will help. All 3 of my kids have had this as babies, and it is a pain. Over the course of 7 years we have tried just about everything. The thing that we've had the best luck with is just keeping the skin very healthy by moisturizing. Wash the affected area twice a day with lukewarm water, pat dry, and IMMEDIATELY slather on Cetaphil cream (in the tub, not the lotion from the bottle). It is very thick like Crisco (which you can use in a pinch) and will seal the moisture into the skin and keep it healthy. The trick is to get it rubbed on while the skin is still dewey from being washed. The Cetaphil cream works as a moisture barrier to lock that moisture into the skin and help it heal itself. If you do this twice a day you will find that you will need the steroids only rarely. This is important, because depending upon where your child is developmentally, it can cause some issues. My daughter has a baby tooth with an ugly brown patch on it because it is hyperplastic. Basically, there isn't enough calcium in that spot, because that tooth just happened to be forming while she was on some heavy duty steroids when she first got diagnosed with this. They just kept upping the strength until she was on adult strength steroids as a toddler. We learned our lesson with her and have been very proactive with our boys when it comes to keeping their skin healthy. Every now and then we have to use the steroid creams, but nothing like what we did with our daughter. The Cetaphil is not cheap, but it has worked wonders for all 3 of my kids. Good luck!

Hi K.,
I would be happy to send you a picture and a sample of our baby care products...unless of course you have a friend who represents Arbonne and then you would ask her for one. We have incredible baby skin care products. I believe they would help. If you want email me and I can email to you some pictures...thanks and hope to talk with you soon.
G.

Do you have a blanket or other object that gets close to her face that is down or has feathers in it? If you haven't already you might want to be sure there is a "burping cloth" under her sheet, it may be that she is reacting to the plastic crib/basinett matteres. My grandson has very sensitive skin and his face will get chaped and red, expecially his cheeks and I use Baby Aveeno. I have been using this on him since he was about 2 weeks old and it takes a couple of days but it does subside, he is now 3.
Hope this helps...

Ask your peditrician about a prescription cream called Elidel which has no cortisone in it... it helped alot!

The first thing I would do is take her to a dermatologist and get a recommendation from him. You might be sure that she has a specific condition, but you aren't a medical professional, so you should always check with a doctor first. She might have what you think, she might have a reaction to something in her environment or diet, or she might have another form of rash that should be treated differently. You should never treat something you don't understand.
Don't worry, if the doctor finds that hydrocortizone can be used to help your daughter, he will be able to prescribe a lower percentage that can be used on small children. My doctor did this for a rash that developed over my son's left eye. You do have to limit how long you use the medication, because cortizone is still a steroid and careful use is needed. Good luck.

Hi K., A friend of mine at church had what sounds like the same thing you are describing, her cheeks were so red, they looked severely wind burned or chapped, this was when she was young like your baby, she grew out of it, but in the mean time ask your baby's doctor about tea tree Oil, this stuff is amazing. It's all natural so it should be ok for your baby, you can buy it at a health food store, we get ours at henry's.
hope this helps. J. L.

Hi K.,

I've read all of your responses so far and they are all pretty similar. I am a rep for a company called Arbonne and have learned a lot about skin care. You really don't want to be putting any of these creams and lotions on your skin, especially a babies sensative face. Vaseline, lotions, medical creams...etc. are made with mineral oil. Not only is it a gasoline byproduct, it coats the skin and seals off pores. So not only can any of the good ingredients that may help get in and penetrate the skin to heal, it doesn't let any of the bad stuff out of our skin. We have had amazing results with our baby line. We've even delivered product late at night for moms who didn't know what to do with their crying babies in pain. I would highly suggest trying the ABC line. There is a hair and body wash, moisturizing oil and lotion, diaper rash creme and spf 30 sunscreen lotion. All of our products are made with botanicals and natural oils so that our skin will actually absorb the products and start to heal. We also have a pediatrician reccomended letter. I can get info and samples to you if you would like. Just let me know at ____@____.com I don't hear from you, best of luck with your little one.
J.

Hi K.
I'm the mother of a 61/2 yr old girl who had the same seborrehic Dermititus at 6 weeks. The pediatric dermatologist gave us a salve that was primarily peanut oil. this allowed the skin to soften, sooth irratation and repair the skin... If you have a pediatric dematologist you can contact for the peanut oil... i would highly suggest it..
Best of luck.
A.

My son, 5 now, has eczema. When he was younger, about 6 months, we discovered dry patches on his face, arms and legs. Instead of using the hydrocortisone cream or the prescribed steroid, we use Aquaphor, made by Eucerin. It helps with some of the dryness & helps moisturize. We use it for my daughter who is now 7 months. She has dry patches on her face which is probably from all the drooling (she's teething). Good luck!

Aquaphor! We use it for everything. And less frequent bathing with soaps. Also watch for reoccurence with foods that you eat if breatfeeding. My son's rash was triggered by pectin.

wow you got a lot of responses. for the record, my dr. just told me yesterday that my son has a rash from the dryer sheets. use "free" cleanser and "free" softener only in the washer is what i was told. i was instructed to use cortisone ointment as opposed to cream. good luck!

i had a little one, like 12 wweks, who started getting rashes, and i won't even go into the extensive stuff we tried. and your mom is right. your little one's body is likely trying to get rid of something...in my son's case, it was the heavy metal cadmium. we ate organic, had expensive water filtration, but it didn't stop the cadmium (we later found one pipe that had been replaced in our water intake system that was not copper, but galvanized, and it rotted thru, leaching cadmium into the water supply.
so to be sure, try drinking only bottled water for say, 14 days, if you're nursing, or give her formula made only with bottled water. if i'd done that early on, my little guy would have been much less miserable! it could also be a food allergy, but then again, they'll tell you, "come back when she's 4 and we'll test." in the meantime, check the water and food!:)

K.- My daughter had something similar when she was a baby. Her pediatrician suggested a type of lactic acid based cream to put on her face. In my over-exuberance to fix the problem quickly, I put it on a little too much and it over dried the skin. In moderation, it worked great! Talk to your pediatrician and ask about an OTC (over the counter) lactaid cream and see if they think it would work. Use it sparingly though, so it won't "burn" her face. Sometimes, they just grow out of it, like my son did. I didn't treat him for it, because I wanted to wait and see if it was the same thing. After a few months, it went away on it's own. Switching to Soy milk didn't work for my kids either. Keeping them on milk (especially breast milk, if you can) seems to help them in the longer run. I'm not a pro, but I have four kids and seemed to have experienced a lot of different things at this point. I hope this helps!
Jen

I am a mother of four. My oldest two boys had various skin problems that I treated with cortizone and the conditions improved. My third had much more severe skin irritations. After going from doctor to doctor I realized she (as well as my older boys) was allergic to detergents and dryer sheets. I switched to free and clear detergents, lotions and soaps that are not scented (cetaphil) and stopped using dryer sheets. I have seen a huge improvement in all the kids. Although the cortizone was helping treat the problem - removing the cause prevented it and now they are all doing well. It is an easy thing to try one load of laundry without and see if no dryer sheets (not even the free & clear) and unscented detergent helps.

HI,
First talk with your pediatrician... however, my daughter has that and he recommended the hydrocortizone 1% cream. Ultimately, you don't want her skin to crack and then get a bacterial infection. My ped. also recommended switching soap, so I use the generic cetaphil wash on her skin. Hope that helps.

Hi K.,
I personally have not dealt with this condition, but I am an Arbonne Consultant and was wondering if you have tried Arbonne on your daughters skin condition? I have photos of a baby with similar condition that was completely helped with Arbonne. There are no animal by products or petroleum in these products. Message me back if you would like more information.
I hope I can help you!
D. C
SAHM to almost 5 yr old beautiful princess.

before getting a prescription from my pediatrician, I would put vaseline on my girls' faces and it helped alot. Try the vaseline and ask your pediatrician for prescription oitment.

my mom used a little bit of hydro-cortisone cream for my 3 year old brother because he also had a rash that would go away and then come back... the doctor hasn't done anything she says it's just a rash but i'm glad i came across your email thing because no i'll look the name up on web MD... have you ever tried that, maybe it would tell you... my mother also uses cetaphil, it's this lotion. my mom said to tell you to try DOVE soap... thanks for listening good luck!!!

before any meds try some oatmeal water, place a large spoonful of oatmeal in a hankerchief or thin material of sort let that sit on the warm water then use the water to wash the affected area, give a it about 3 days it'll definitely smooth the skin out, and then go on to stronger stuff

My son had something similar, and I too read that you are not supposed to use cortisone on kids, however, there is a 1/2 % strength cortisone that you can get at almost any pharmacy that is more mild, and that seemed to help my little guy. You could ask your Dr. if that might be a good alternative. Good luck.

Are you sure it's not just baby acne? Seborrheic Dermatitus looks like a really severe rash, not just a rash. Has you Ped. seen it yet? I'd hold off on the Cortisone until the Ped. has seen it and made a firm diagnosis. That said, my son is just getting over baby acne and when I had asked my Ped. about it she said to leave it alone but if it got really bad she would advise us to use 1% cortisone very sparingly. Before you do it one your own, I tried physiobebe by Mustela and it seems to be working (though it could be a coincidence) it's sort of expensive though. I've also heard good things about Cetaphil, which is cheaper and easier to find. Good luck!

My doctor ok'd using cortaid on my daughter at her 2 mo. check-up. She had dry patches on her forehead. It seemed to work well.

My son got a rash on his face and body around the same time due to my breast milk and a surge of post-partum hormones clearing it's way out of my body. My Dr. recommended cortisone and gave me trial sizes. It is a type of steroid and the Dr. cautioned me to keep it clear from his eyes. It made me nervous to use a steroid on him so I used it very sparingly and it cleared up so quickly I didn't have to continue using it for any prolonged period of time. It ended up popping up one more time so I followed the same routine and then it was done.

Hi K.,

My son had eczema rather than seborrehea but the pediatric dermatologist we saw told us to use "Vanicream" on him when he came out of the shower (No baths because they sit in the soap...) and was still moist. It did wonders for him and now I use it too. You can find it at the pharmacy. You have to ask for it at the desk because it's actually a compounding cream to put medicines into. It is, however, NOT a prescription drug. I'm not certain it will help your daughter's situation but it's worth a try. It won't hurt her and it might help.. If nothing else, you'll be able to use it on your poor dried out Mama of a Little One Hands. It'll be FAR better than any cream you'll get at "Bath and Body Works" (and I LOVE them!).

Best of luck.

M.

Babies often get seborreheic dermatitis on their scalps (cradle cap)but on the face is unusual. If left untreated, does it become thick and scaly? If not, it might not be dermatitis. At any rate, take her to a good childhood allergist since your son has a history of allergies and start there with the process of elimination.

K.,
Children under 2, especially newborns, absorb things topically and digestively very differently than older children and adults. VERY small amounts of substances can be toxic to infants, especially newborns. I would not put anything on my child other than lotion, rash cream and baby wash without consulting my pediatrician. I strongly suggest you take your daughter back in and speak with your pediatrician before you do anything.
I know it's tough to look it, but it may just need time to clear up on it's own. I'm not sure which soap you switched to, but you may want to try an all natural laundry soap, like seventh generation or trader joe's.
Good luck!
T.

Hi K.,

Soy is also a major allergen for children. Any chance you could still nurse? It's better for baby all around. After all, we didn't evolve suckling cow's milk or soybeans! If you can't get lactation going at this point, try a hypoallergenic hydrolyzed formula. There's also a possibility that your daughter is allergic to an inhaled/environmental allergen, such as animal dander, pollen, dustmites, etc., but that's pretty rare at 7 weeks. Those allergies don't usually arise until about 2 or so, but there are always exceptions! Since you son had a food allergy, there's a good chance that your daughter has a genetic predisposition to allergy (this is called atopy). Are either you or your husband allergic or have asthma? That would increase the likelihood of your daughter being allergic considerably.

I wouldn't use hydrocortisone on an infant. With extended use, it can cause break down of the skin. Also, the steroid is more likely to be absorbed through the skin.

Many babies go through a period of baby acne or have various other rashes. Often these have a hormonal basis that will even itself out over time. (This is especially true of boys, who actually go through a type of infant puberty between 1 and 4 months.) If the rash isn't infected, cracked, peeling, etc. and/or if your daughter doesn't seem to be bothered by it, I would just do some watchful waiting to see if it clears up on its own. If not, ask your pediatrician about seeing a dermatologist rather than self-diagnosing. (There's a reason those folks went through a dozen years of med school, internship and residency! ;-) )

BTW, seborrheic dermatitus in infants usually begins as severe cradle cap and clears up on its own, usually by or before the 3rd birthday.

My little girl developed the same thing on her forehead, bridge of her nose and cheeks when she was about 3 months old. We tried several different things too. What ended up clearing it up was applying Eucerin cream (not lotion)twice a day for a few weeks. It finally went away. Before trying it I was skeptical because I thought the greasiness of the cream would make it worse (like acne) but it was the only thing that did work. She just turned a year old and I still put eucerin on her skin every other day.

Hi K.,
I am so sorry to hear about your daughter. You need to go to a dermatologist. Especially since it is her face, you don't want to start using heavy steroid cream amounts without some direction to make sure you do it properly. A systemic medication may be considered a better option as it seems to be on a large part of her face and it may spread. There are a lot of solutions out there, but you need to see an expert. Beware as well that steroid creams will make her even more sensitive to the sun; this could make her skin really vulnerable and cause scarring. Please consult a dermatologist. I hope it helps.

I had the same experience with my daughter when she was that age and the doctor advised me to just leave it alone and it will just go away by itself. And it did! Don't worry about it and don't use the cortisone!!! And by the way, I'm an RN, too. Good luck!!!