What to do if your child's face is red, swollen or itchy

Redness, swelling and itching on a child's face may be caused by eczema. Eczema is a relatively common inflammatory skin disease that can have an acute onset and can turn into chronic eczema if not treated promptly. The onset of eczema is recurrent and after being cured, it can recur due to various reasons. The clinical manifestations of eczema are red raised areas on the skin surface, accompanied by redness, swelling, itching, etc. So, what should we do if our children have eczema?

Common medications for eczema

(1) Topical application of drugs containing corticosteroids is definitely effective for eczema and can be chosen for mild or small-scale eczema. For large-scale eczema or recurrent eczema, frequent, large-scale or long-term use of drugs containing corticosteroids can have systemic and local skin side effects. Not to mention the systemic side effects, the local skin side effects remind us to choose carefully.

(2) The most prominent local skin side effects of corticosteroids are drug-dependent dermatitis and rebound dermatitis. Drug-dependent dermatitis refers to the inability to stop taking corticosteroids for eczema. Rebound dermatitis refers to the fact that after the application of topical corticosteroids, the eczema symptoms can improve rapidly, but once the drug is stopped, redness, tenderness, itching, cracks, desquamation and even pustules may occur at the medication site (especially the face) within one or two days, and the eczema will become more severe. When the hormone is reapplied, the condition will improve or disappear quickly; if the drug is stopped again, rebound dermatitis will recur and be more severe than before.

Therefore, try to avoid using large doses of topical corticosteroids for a long time or in a short period of time. Currently, Chinese herbal cream has overcome this drawback and the treatment is safe and thorough.

Eczema prevention care

Keep the skin clean and dry: When bathing your baby, use warm water and non-alkaline bath agent to clean the baby's body. For babies with intertrigo, special attention should be paid to cleaning the folds of the skin. When taking a bath, the shower gel must be rinsed off. After washing, wipe the moisture off the baby's body and apply a non-oily moisturizer to avoid hindering the normal breathing of the skin. The baby's hair should also be washed every day. If the baby has seborrheic dermatitis, washing the head carefully can remove the scabs. If the scab has hardened and stuck to the head, apply olive oil on the affected area and then wash it after a while.

If the baby is breastfed, the mother should pay attention to a light diet and avoid foods such as fish, shrimp, eggs, etc. that can easily aggravate eczema.

Trim nails: If your baby suffers from severely itchy atopic dermatitis or contact dermatitis, parents should trim their baby's nails regularly to reduce the chance of scratching.

Avoid external stimulation: Parents should always pay attention to changes in temperature and humidity around the baby. Babies with contact dermatitis should especially avoid exposing their skin to cold wind or strong sunlight. In summer, after your baby sweats during exercise, you should wipe off his sweat carefully; when the weather is cold and dry, you should apply anti-allergic non-oily moisturizer to your baby.