Three week old with bleeding nappy rash - advise needed

[MissHarrison]

My 3 wk old has had a bad nappy rash for over a week now in which it started of really red and then literatley over night blistered and started to bleed. I initailly was trying to control it with sudocreme and then from advice of HV put on Benpethan to no avail - then it blistered - We wne to the Gp and put on Caneston and Metanium - but the blisters just wont heal and week and half later they are still bleeding. I use cotton wool and water - she gets 3 hours nappy off time per day at least - How can I get them to heal? My GP told me to slap on the Metanium - is this right? Or should it just be a thin layer? I just worry that if its not applied on thickly then the urine and poo will come in to contact with the blisters. We have also tried Zinc and caster oil and just zinc ointment. Any suggestions?

[norktasticninja]

DS had a the same and we tried everything from sudocreme to antifungals and back again. My idiot GP even prescribed a steroid cream at one point... I was finally advised to try corn starch and it healed amazingly quickly. It's definitely worth a try!

I have heard a lot of good things about egg white, but there is a small risk of salmonella poisoning so I've never dared try it.

[blowninonabreeze]

Has anything changed wrt the feeding? Change of formula? Change from breast feeding etc? You poor things, that sounds horrendous. The only time DD had nappy rash that bad was when I changed her to follow on formula (much older - 14 months) when I stopped feeding? Just a thought.

Have also heard good things about egg white

[RemusLupinInAWizardsuit]

Metanium in a very thin layer just to cover so you can still see/feel skin texture through it. Then put a thick layer of Sudocrem over the top as a barrier.

if that doesn't work, or the other suggestions (have never tried egg white but seems also like a similar principle to...)

Cavilon - you will need to be prescribed it or ask your HV - it is a spray used for bedsores. It basically covers the skin with a layer of plasticy stuff. Very chemical but we were very grateful for it when in exactly your position with a newborn. It protects the skin longterm and forms a strong barrier that doesn't wash off (it kind of wears off eventually)

When their bottoms are seriously open sores like this, the constant flow of acidic urine and poo doesn't help healing at all. So really, insist on the big guns if the cream solutions don't help quickly.

Good luck.

[norktasticninja]

DS was about a week old when his rash started, we struggled with it (and it got worse) for 3 weeks before the miracle of the corn starch. It started to look better with 24-36 hours and is completely healed now (he's 5 1/2 weeks). Seriously, try it!

[HerBeatitude]

Just a small warning about egg-white - I was also recommended it for DS and tried it and he had an almost instant reaction to it - came out in v. bad eczema. (He isn't allergic to eggs, eats them no probs.) It was v. strange.

[Pingpong]

what nappies are you using? maybe there is a chemical in there that is reacting with your babies skin. I'd try a different brand.
My DD never had bad nappy rash like you describe, the worst we had was with teething and a thin layer of metanium cleared it up quickly.
Good luck

[morocco]

could it be infected and need antibacterial or maybe even anti thrush treatment? try a hv again for more advice - mine could tell the difference from across the room. gp's don't see as many baby bums
have you tried using different types of nappy as well in case it's a reaction to the moisturiser things they put in nappies?
hope you get something to work quickly - sounds ouch

[norktasticninja]

Ooops - what I meant to say was...

Because parts of DSs rash were bleeding creams just 'floated' off the the places there were most needed, they weren't able to form a barrier at all.

It wasn't thrush but it had been mis-diagnosed as such.

[scienceteacher]

My DD had this when she was about 6 months old. It spread all over her body!

The first thing the doctor gave us was anti-fungal - that didn't work. Then we tried hydro-cortizone - this helped a little but not particularly impressively. Then it was thought to be infected and DD had antibiotics. It all cleared up very quickly after that.

The whole thing took several weeks, and I kept DD as naked as possible during that time.

[369thegoosedrankwine]

DS got horrendous nappy rash when he got gastroenteritis at about 11 mo. The canestan that I was prescribed used to make him scream (I was concerned that it stung him) but the metanium (prescribed after a second visit to the doctor) was amazing stuff.

I would see doctor / hv again though if there is no change.

[Salleroo]

Can I ask, is corn starch corn flour?

Do you disolve it in water and apply a paste or sprinkle it on dry? A light dusting?

DD2 6 weeks old has had nappy rash for almost 4 weeks now, got antibiotics and it was coming good but is going backwards again, poor little mite. And, she hates being left out of her nappy.

[maltesers]

Not sure if anyone has advised...but get the air to babies bottom...nappy off for as long as possible. The wet and damp doesnt help...lots of air and dryness will help it to heal. poor babe !! good luck !

[mamabear2b]

DS has had this too and we used aloe gel (healthfood shops stock it).
We would pat it on then wait until it had dried then lathered sudocreme over it, the aloe gel soothes but also provided a base for the sudocreme to stick to.

Hope it gets better soon

[norktasticninja]

COrn starch and cornflour are indeed the same thing, I should have said that before really

I apply it dry using a piece of cotton wool or a cotton wool pad as a powder puff. At first I used a new bit each time just in case there was anything infectious going on. Just give it a good dusting - it sticks were it's most badly needed anyway. As it's totally natural and neutral you don't need to worry about using too much.

I suppose you could sprinkle it on but I using a 'puff' means less powder is launched into the air and baby's lungs.

[norktasticninja]

As well as the corn starch/flour I've been using Benpethan a couple of times a day (and at night) since it healed over. I tried Metanium (it alays works a treat for DD) but Benpethan seems to be better for DS

[Salleroo]

Will give the cornstarch/flour a bash and report back...

[norktasticninja]

I really hope it helps

I also always dry off the bum after I've cleaned it, I use washable wipes and water though and I think I have them quite a bit wetter than official baby wipes.

Not sure if drying would be necessary with baby wipes...

[hellymelly]

My baby had this at the same age,the gp initially thought it was some sort of blood filled birthmark! Anyway she reacted horribly to the metanium,it made it worse and she screamed when I put it on.Eventually we got it healed by only dabbing very very gently,with dampened cotton wool (not wiping) when we cleaned her,and using weleda nappy cream and baby oil.She never had it again.

[norktasticninja]

Good point about the dabbing hellymelly!

Weleda baby stuff is lovely, I use quite a few of their products, but unfortunately the bum cream didn't work for us this time

It's definitely one to have in the cupboard though, it seems a lot gentler than Sudocreme. 'tis always the first thing I reach for if I think they need a barrier cream for any reason.

[kerrywells2006]

I have never found anything to be as good as metanium, which I found to clear up even bleeding within a couple of nappy changes.

[Sheeta]

Do you mind me asking what kind of nappies you're using?

[lal123]

The only time DD had a sore bum was when we used sudacrem - I think its horrible stuff. Friend's dd and ds were sensitive to it too - made their wee bums bleed. We used (and still use!) conotrane cream - its wonderful stuff!

[redtabby]

I am a first time mum and knew little about nappy rash, my DH has had two children before and knew all about it. His previous babies grew up in South Africa where the cream called Antipeol is looked upon as a wonder cream for nappy rash. He told me that no matter how bad the rash, blistered, bleeding, whatever, Antipeol will cure it.

I had tried Metanium and Sudacrem on my baby and he was still suffering the redness and blisters, I then got some Antipeol (you can order it through online chemist websites, I have not found it in an acual shop) and it is indeed miraculous stuff. Within a day. No rash at all. I highly highly recommend it.

[MissHarrison]

Thanks for al the hints and tips - I took her back to the GP and he prescribed her another anti fungel and prescribed me a thrush treatment but nearly one week on again- still no improvement. I was advised by HV not to use any egg white/ breast milk or corn flour in case it is a fungal infection and it might thrive off this protein?! The GP seemed confident that it would be sorted with this treatment..... but its not improved so I will take her back tomorrow - Anyone else got any experience of thrush?