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How to Manage Eczema in Infants

How to Manage Eczema in Infants

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Highlights:
  • Approximately 10%–20% of babies in Canada have atopic dermatitis
  • Applying a moisturizer regularly, using anti-inflammatory medicines, and topical steroids can help to manage eczema
Atopic dermatitis, or eczema, is a common condition in infants and can be difficult for parents to manage.
“Atopic dermatitis affects 10%–20% of Canadian infants. Recognizing atopic dermatitis, getting it into remission, and then keeping control can be challenging for both clinicians and caregivers,” says Dr Derek Chu, assistant professor at the Division of Allergy and Immunology at McMaster University and co-chair of the upcoming American Academy of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology and American College of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology atopic dermatitis guidelines. “We hope these five key messages for general and specialist care providers, as well as caregivers, promote best practices for managing atopic dermatitis in infants. Atopic dermatitis affects more than just the skin and it impacts the whole family, so optimally managing atopic dermatitis at this critical stage in an infant's development is important.”

Common Sites for Eczema

Infants frequently have atopic dermatitis on their cheeks, outer limbs, and trunk, but classic eczema affects the area behind the knees and in the elbow, and creases may not appear until later in childhood.

Tips to Manage Eczema in Infants

A moisturizer that patients and caregivers will use is the finest moisturizer. According to recent research, using moisturizers of any kind- lotion, cream, gel, or ointment- at least twice daily can help manage atopic dermatitis.

Since atopic dermatitis is an inflammatory disorder, anti-inflammatory medication is necessary for treatment.

To control flares, the lowest number of topical steroids should be applied. Applying once daily is just as beneficial as applying twice daily. When flares occur frequently, they can be avoided by taking topical treatments infrequently (for example, for two days in a row, on weekends).

Antibiotics should not be used often to treat local secondary bacterial infections, according to the evidence.

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Avoiding foods might not improve eczema and raise the risk of developing a food allergy.

Source-Medindia


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