My three year old has fingers that swell then they blister looking almost like a second degree burn and peel. She has been tested for Herpes, they thought it was contact dermatits (aka nothing) They thought she might just be sucking on them... now it is one of those things where she has "joint degeneration in the fingers" but doesnt have arthritis. Anyone have a clue? Or seen anything like it? We have been to the pediatric dermatologist... and they didnt have an answer either... except for go to the genetecist.
Is there a way to attach a picture? Can I show you nice mamas what they look like? I love all of your Ideas, BTW... some of your Ideas I have used, some of them I like alot... Im not sure where the like button is... can someone explain this since I am new? OH! and it is only on 2 fingers right now... it used to rotate between fingers now it has "stabalized" and "lives" on the two... Does this help you any more? Thanks again so much for all your wonderful help!
So the Genetecist thinks it may be Piebaldism. She may even have some other syndrome, Bart-Pumphrey Syndrome? Because of some hearing loss she has, and a white diamond/triangular patch on her stomach. I really now am wishing I had taken pictures of her hands when if first started.
When I googled Piebaldism I read about "graft Vs Host disease" and the pictures almost match her fingers perfectly. They are the only pictures I have ever found that look even close to what her hands look like... now to get someone to listen... NO I AM NOT DIAGNOSING HER... I am just saying the pictures look exactly alike. I also realised that her natural grandmother has the same bleached out patch of hair as is described in the Piebaldism websites. But it is interesting to see that my daughter does not have it. It only surfaced on her skin, on her abdomen, possibly affecting her fingers, and now we may have more than one thing affecting her. We have been referred back to dermatology.
Have they done allergy testing? After YEARS of the same symptoms they finally agreed to allergy testing for me. I have an allergy to the preservatives in soaps and cleaning products. You may want to ask for allergy testing. It could be soap you're using, or even something she's eating. Best of luck, I know how irritating this can be!
HI Bubbly---I was also going to suggest the fungal cream route. I would guess that her activities put her in a position to be vulnerable to that.
If there is talk of an auto-immune disorder, and I would be leary because it seems that no one really knows anything right now (Dr.s are very important, knowledgable people, but they don't know what they don't know---meaning they don't know everything and seem to be compelled to label something anyway). How is her diet? Is she a picky eater?
I am not suggesting that she has a bad diet, but some people just need to eat better, eat cleaner than other people if they are vulnerable to chronic health 'problems'. I have some sheets that indicate how many servings of fruit and veggies a 3 yr old should be eating every day. Eating as many fruits and veggies, as well as whole grains, legumes (beans), nuts and seeds as possible will help her immune system work better. Additionally, try to avoid negative foods as much as possible (tough to do as manufacturers sometimes use different names for them), such as HFCS, MSG, artificial colorings and flavors...basically anything that you cannot pronounce. These chemicals challenge the immune system.
Cows milk is highly allergenic. It is best eliminated from the diet. Please explore the websites www.pcrm.org and www.strongbones.org. 'Google' 'why not milk' and read about the potential problems from consuming dairy. If you are concerned about calcium, I can help suggest far superior sources, all from plants.
If your daughter is a picky eater and doesn't get alot of fruits and veg, would you like to know what my family does to increase our nutritional intensity every day? What impact do you think it would have if you were able to consume nutrients from 17 different fruits and veggies every day? Ask me how.
Good luck. D.
NOTE: Gailski, on June 11, states that kids need to consume animals in order to get vitamin A. This is simply NOT TRUE. While it is true that we consume pre-formed A from animals, our bodies have the ability to make vitamin A from beta-carotene, which is found in yellow and green fruit and vegetables. Even kids have the ability to make A from beta-carotene. And, eating pre-formed A or vit A supplements can lead to a toxic overdose, while you could never overdose on beta-carotene. The body actually stores excess b-c just under the skin and makes A when needed. So, eat lots of yellow and green foods and you'll never have a problem. In fact, adequate levels of beta-carotene help to prevent sunburn damage. Beta-carotene is the compound that protects fruit and veg from the sun. For over 6 years I have been consuming a plant based supplement which contains lots of beta-carotene. I haven't gotten a sunburn in over 3 years. I'm in the sun ALOT and while I will get pink, I have not peeled in those 3 years. Too much animal protein (as well as other triggers) causes immune system disorders. I'd be happy to discuss this at any time and share my resources with you. Hope she's doing well.
You are going to think I am nuts when I give you this suggestion. It was given to me by bartenders who have their hands in water a lot (this was before they all had little dishwashers). I was having a similar problem so I tried their suggestion (thinking I was crazy) but it worked. Sometimes you can get a fungus on your hands and fingernails. Use Monostat or a similar vaginal product and rub into the skin and under the nails. It is an anti-fungal cream. It cured my problem within days.
I still occasionally have the palms of my hands and the soles of my feet blister and peel. A little Monostat (or the generic equivalent) heals them better than any prescription has ever done.
My mom had something similar for years and then it just stopped. The tips of my fingers were the finger tips are first the skin would get very hard. Then the skin would break open. My mom has lots of seasonal allergies that had something to do with it. None of our other relatives had that problem. When it used to happen to my mom it was around this time of the year.
I've never heard of this particular symptom, but I would check into food allergies if I were you. You never know. Food allergies can present all kinds of odd symptoms especially in children.
Also, don't give up! Keep searching until you find the solution for your child, and don't accept doctors who say, "Gee, we just don't know." or "Wait for a while and see.." In today's world, we have to be the advocates for our children. We can no longer trust that doctors have all the answers. Use the internet (as you are doing here).
Good luck!
Have you been to rheumatologist? He specialized in auto immune disorders and this sounds like that could be it. I've not heard of joint degeneration that was not called arthritis but I've heard enough about immune disorders to think it could be caused by that. You might look up lupus. I don't remember if the joints are affected by it but nearly every body system can be.
The geneticist could make a diagnosis based on her genetic make up. I think it's important to follow thru soon. This sounds like something that could get worse. And once joints degenerate there are limited treatments. Prevention would be important.
I agree with Anne L. When I was bartending full time I would have similar problems. I was told to rub a 50/50 mix of hydrocortisone cream and an anti-fungal cream. Once it is cleared up you need to pay specific attention to what sets it off. To this day I cannot touch any cleaning products, NONE, or I break out immediately. You may have to change her shampoo, bodywash, handsoap, lotion,or all of the above. Sebhorric Dermatitis is what I was told by my dermatologist is the medical name for it. They may try to give steroid creams but I refuse to use that on my body. As long as I pay very close attention to the products I use, I am symptom free. When I slack (like on vacation) I am able to use just the hydrocortisone cream and stop it before it starts. I only had to use the anti-fungal cream to rid it completely the first time.
update: Ok- I have come across it in my notes. It is a VITAMIN A DEFICIENCY. now here's the deal about vit A with kids.... They need to comsume animal fats/animal meats to get it, because they cannot convert beta carotene. So increase meats and poultry. You can also give Cod liver oil which is a high vit A product.
Good luck,
Gail
>I have come accross this in my medical research but I cannot remember specifically what it was.
However, any of these could be causing peeling, scaling skin issues:
scarlet fever (strep infection) (has she has any fevers /weird rashes in the past 4-6 weeks?)
vit B deficiencies, (b3, b6) Just take a b complex in liquid form, under the tounge. A docotr might want you to give extra b6.
Kawasaki disease
mercury poisoning (can be misdiagnosed as Kawasaki) (excessive shots?)
Other chemical poisoning (iron supplements?)
overconsumption of vit A
touching lye or something that has lye in it
vit c deficiency (dry rough scaly skin/carliage and tendon breakdown)
A good thing to do would be to give her fulvic acid. This is a mixture of up to 60 ionic minerals. give her the vit b at the same time. I would also give magnesium malate as well. Magnesium helps build bone. So does boron(which should be in the fulvics).
When I was growing up, I had an issue with peeling fingers, and sometimes down to the palm of my hands. It made the fingers very tender and purlply red. We never quite figured it out, but putting lotion on (which I hated) helped. The theory was that my hands were having the moisture sucked out of them from paper and such. It happend again when I was a teenager working in fast food and handling money...again the paper was blamed. Regardless, I was told I had very sensative skin (no duh) and it could be anything. It eventually went away on its own.
It was also thought that it could be eczema. While I had not other symtoms of it, lotion is a common preventative. Hydrocortozone cream can be used when a breakout is in existance, however, with your daughter's propensity to suck her fingers, I would be concerned...and talk to the pedi first.
The suggestions of fungal/yeast infection is interesting.
Best of luck finding out what it is, and taking care of it.
