Excema/acne/rash = bad intolerance??

[Anonymous]

So, Dallin is 6 weeks old, which I know is a common time to have baby acne. He barely started getting it this past week or two. It has gotten really really bad! Like his whole face is covered with it. Plus, he has really crusty spots on his ear, and between his eyebrows. He has some in his hair, but mostly on his face, neck, etc. It is really crusty feeling. Is this excema? He has also gotten another sudden rash on his bum. He had crazy stools and issues with milk formula and soy formula, so we have been on Nutramigen for 2+ weeks. It seemed to help with the grunting and bad stools. Lately I guess I am just wondering how would you know if he needed to go on to Neocate? I really think he has some form of excema. Is that a sign that the Nutramigen just isn’t doing it? His acid reflux seems to just get worse and worse. He’s on AXID right now and it doesn’t help a bit. Plus, I think he’s getting a cold or something because his cough is horrible.

[Anonymous]

Without looking at the “acne” it kind of sounds like excema to me, with how it looks crusty and with the bm’s. My son has MSPI (milk/soy protein intolerance) and he has the crusty rash (excema) on his earlobes and on his cheeks. I would schedule an appointment with your pedi or GI and have them do a fecal occult test on him. It’s SUPER easy. The easiest thing to do is bring a dirty diaper with you, so the pedi can get a good sample to use. All they do is take a sample of the stool on a long q-tip and put it on a special type of paper. Then they add a drop of solution to the paper. If the paper turns a special color (I believe blue) there is blood in the stool.

When my ds was on a milk formulas (even Nutramigen) he grunted all the time. Strangers used to point it out to me. Nutramigen is a hypoallergenic formula, but still contains milk proteins. Once we started on Elecare, the rash sleared up fairly quickly and so did the grunting. Elecare is similar to Neocate, the mixing directions are a bit different though. Mead Johnson also just introduced their Elemental formula, Nutramigen aa. I don’t believe this one is available in stores though.

I would check out the marci-kids site for info about dosing on your ds’s meds and for info about PPI’s. If the Axid isn’t helping, I would investigate a PPI like Prevacid, Zegerid, Prilosec.

Good luck! HTH!

[Anonymous]

Thanks for the advice. He still grunts, just not as much. Before we went on the Nutramigen the dr tested his stools by doing a finger swipe. There was no blood. I saw blood in his diaper once, but it was bright red. I couldn’t see any tear or fissure, but since it was bright red I figured it was some issue more towards the front, and not in his stomach. Also, it could have been from grunting and pushing so much and his explosive bms or something. I could test again???? The thing is, we probably can’t “afford” the special formula or a PPI drug like Zegerid…but I just want him to be happy. We have Medicaid and WIC, so maybe WIC would pay for a prescription formula? The Medicaid here in NYC seems to be picky about prescription drugs. I have tried getting a PPI from every doctor and specialist, but they all make me feel like a horrible mom for even suggesting it. I really have exhausted almost all of my efforts, and I am exhausted!! I just wish this could be a bit easier. I mean, it’s not enough to deal with a baby in pain and no sleep – we have to deal with stupid doctors who know NOTHING! I got a free sample of Neocate in the mail. I think it would last 3 or so days. Would that even be enough time to show if it would help at all? Should I try it? ?? Thanks! -heather

[Anonymous]

I know that in Colorado, WIC will pay for “other” formulas that are not on their list. For the prescription formulas, you have to have a copy of the prescription and there is an additional paper that your doc has to fill out. Definitely check with your WIC office. They will have the info and additional paperwork you will need.

I know that your little man is on Axid, but another mom on here turned me on to the miracle that is Pepcid complete. It is an H2 blocker like Axid, but it’s over-the-counter and berry flavored so my ds likes it soooo much better than Zantac. I use my pill cutter to cut the tablets in half and then dissolve the half tablet in an oral syringe in about 3-4 mls of water.

Also, I know that the Neocate company will only send one sample per household, but maybe your friends or family have babies that need Neocate, if you know what I mean?

As for the docs, I know that some moms on here have had better success with family docs as opposed to GIs or peds. The family docs are “usually” more willing to give PPI’s and in higher doses.

HUGS to you!!!!

[Anonymous]

Oh, I almost forgot. My mom has used this organization in the past for medictions that her insurance doesn’t cover and she couldn’t afford. Start by clicking on the “patient” tab and it will help you find programs, some by the actual drug manufacturers, that help pay for prescriptions.

https://www.pparx.org/Intro.php

[Anonymous]

Thank you so much for the advice. How can I easily post a picture of his acne/rash to see what you think? It just seems to me that it is bad enough to not be normal. He’s been on Nutramigen for a long while now. My daughter was fine to only switch to Soy formula, so I guess it seems weird that he would have such a severe allergy. Allergies don’t necessarily run in my family…but my mother-in-law has problems with milk, acid reflux, and IBS.

If he really does have this major problem with milk, don’t you think Prevacid wouldn’t be good for him because of the small amounts of dairy? Wouldn’t Zegerid be best???

Does the Pepcid work better than, say, Mylanta?? Mylanta doesn’t seem to do a ton for my little one. Sometimes it seems to give immediate relief, sometimes not. How much mylanta, and how much Pepcid can I give an 11pound 7week old?

[Anonymous]

I would have a ped look at the rash. If they won’t or don’t think it’s bad, try a dermatologist. Isn’t it funny (not really) how siblings can be so different? My dd was my first and the EASIEST baby on the face of the earth. She rarely cried and pretty much hung out. My dd has onlly been on 2 prescriptions (antibiotics) in her life and she’s 4. There isn’t a history of food allergies in either of our families either. And no history of chronic reflux in our family.

The milk product that Prevacid has in it is lactose which is a milk sugar. It’s the milk protein that MSPI kiddos have problems with. According to the research I have read, it is very seldom that babies have real issues with lactose. Mostly it can make them gassy. But it can happen, so anything is possible.

In my non-doctor opinion, Pepcid works better than the Zantac. At least for us. Pepcid and Zantac are both H2 blockers. Mylanta is an antacid. Mylanta sometimes works for Nicholas, but since he has gotten bigger, the effect isn’t as noticeable. I am not exactly sure as to the dosing, but we give Nicholas 1/2 a tablet of Pepcid complete at bedtime. He is 15 lbs. I dissolve the tablet in an oral syringe with the tip cap on, using about 3-4 mls of warm water. After adding the water, I shake the syringe until the tablet dissolves. I know that Jill (jilly78) does it differently, so you might use the search option and look for the posts about Pepcid dosing. There is a post somewhere about how much Pepcid too.

HTH!

[Anonymous]

Here is the dosing post:

https://www.infantreflux.org/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=10717&PN=1

[hellbennt]

WIC should cover everything- it might be a bit of a battle, but so is everything regarding fighting for our babies…sigh…

if you go to the Introduce Yourself Forum and then click on ‘groupie intro’ there is a link for finding a specialist near you…if that doesn’t work (there are drs from NYC I do believe. AND, everyone reading this, if you haven’t already posted YOUR dr & why s/he is good OR ‘bad’ then PLEASE DO!) then I would contact marci-kids & ask…

also from ‘groupie intro’ is a link called ‘Going to the Top!’

this tells you how to fight the good fight! and how to get insurance to cover meds & neocate…

You can contact 1-800-830-1015 for the TAP Prevacid Patient Assistance Program. They GIVE prevacid (capsules only) away for free if you meet certain guidelines. You can even have partial prescription drug coverage. [editing to add that this would be good for older babies who can eat applesauce w/ the beads from the capsules..]

There is a website for people
who cannot afford their meds. It’s at:

http://www.needymeds.com/indices/brandname.shtml

It has a listing of medications & the manufacturers that have
assistance programs, many times they provide the medicine for free if
you meet their criteria.

[Anonymous]

My middle child had what my doc said was the worst case of infant eczema she had ever seen. Her jaw literally dropped when I took my little girl out of her carseat to show her. It started out as what I thought was infant acne but like you described it spread to cover her entire face. The only part of her face you could still see were her lips, part of her nose and some of her forehead. It was horrible and I was terrified.

Anyway, back then (she’s 4 now) they were prescribing Elidel for infants with eczema and I was told to put Elidel on her twice a day and Cortaid 1% Ointment (not cream) twice a day. Within days I could see patches of white skin again, and within a few weeks the eczema was nearly gone. I know they cannot prescribe Elidel for children anymore due to a potential link that was found to Lymphoma, but there is a new Eczema drug for infants (an oinment) being advertised on TV. I can’t for the life of me remember the name of it, but I’d definitely take her to the doc and ask about it.

Also, my doctor told me the dairy is a big culprit with babies who have eczema, and that for some Wheat is also a problem. I had to be dairy free while nursing because milk definitely brought on flare ups. Wheat didn’t seem to be a problem for Eliana.

About the Prevacid, does it actually contain milk? I though it was just lactose. Lactose is a milk sugar which rarely poses problems for babies. It’s usually the milk proteins that babies are intolerant to.

Good luck and keep us posted.

[Anonymous]

Kaelyn’s initial allergy symptoms were a rash that they insisted was eczema, constipation and a red bottom, so I’m always really nervous whenever anyone describes a rash the way that you just did.

[Anonymous]

Is the rash on his bottom all over or a ring around the anus? My ds had the ring and that is one of the things his GI doc noticed right off the bat. He said that the red ring was related to the intolerance.

[Author]

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