With a disease like diaper dermatitis, many mothers have to face. It is inherent in children of the first years of life who are not yet able to control physiological functions. How to properly treat this pathology, and how to prevent it, we will consider further.
Diaper Dermatitis - Causes
Pediatric dermatitis in children is an inflammatory lesion of the skin that comes into contact with feces, in the area of contact with a diaper or diaper. The defeat occurs due to several factors:
- Insufficient barrier functions of the skin of babies , in comparison with the skin tissues of older children and adults (in infants the epidermis is very thin, saturated with moisture, with a poorly developed stratum corneum, a small amount of connective tissue and a closely located capillary layer).
- Microdamage of the epidermis due to friction of the diaper, diaper or other tissue adjacent to the baby's body.
- Infringements of rules of care of the child - untimely replacement of a wet diaper or the overfilled diaper because of what there is a swelling and maceration of the top layers of a skin.
- Chemical impact of aggressive components of the urine and feces of the child (especially with increased acidity of feces) - urea and its cleavage products, bile acids, digestive enzymes, secreted by intestinal microflora of substances and so on.
- Physical factors - high humidity and high air temperature in the room, excessive wrapping, causing increased sweating.
- Infectious factor - the effect of cutaneous and colonic conditional pathogenic microflora.
In addition, we can identify a number of factors predisposing to the development of the disease and ailments:
- diarrhea ;
- dysbiosis;
- atopic dermatitis ;
- immunodeficiencies;
- inefficient use of skin care products;
- rare bathing;
- short duration of air baths.
Fungal diaper dermatitis
Danger is a diaper dandruff, formed when the fungi of the genus Candida are active. Fungal infection is accompanied by a toxic effect on the children's body, which are the products of the vital activity of pathogens. Defeat can quickly spread to other areas of the body, especially where there are wrinkles.
Bacterial diaper dermatitis
This form of the disease, like bacterial diaper dermatitis in infants, is seen as a complication, often associated with the activation of staphylococcal or streptococcal infection. Sometimes bacterial skin inflammation develops due to infection of the umbilical cord. If in the pathogenic flora there is a golden staphylococcus of the second type, there is bullous impetigo .
What does diaper dandruff look like?
Diaper dermatitis in newborns is characterized by such a clinical picture:
- Hyperemia (redness) of the skin in the perineum, buttocks, genitals, inguinal folds, lower abdomen (sometimes the affected area covers the area of the sacrum, waist, hips).
- Irregularity of hyperemia, lack of clear boundaries between healthy and damaged tissues (areas of enlightenment with minor signs of inflammation and marked reddening around the diapers of the diaper, in areas of urine leakage, near the anus can be observed).
- Puffiness and soreness in the affected area.
- In some cases - the presence of small-scaby rash, the appearance of dryness, peeling, cracks in the place of fading areas of inflammation.
- With the development of wetness - the appearance of erosive areas, wetting painful surfaces, which are covered with thin serous crusts as they heal.
- If diaper dermatitis candidiasis, the presence of pink papules and plaques that look like bright red raised above the skin foci with clear outlines, hot touch, with characteristic peeling at the border with healthy skin and involving in the pathological process of skin folds.
- When attaching bacterial microflora - the appearance of bright red edematous erythema without lesions of the folds, often accompanied by an increase in body temperature and general malaise.
Diaper dermatitis - treatment
How to treat diaper dermatitis in a child, the pediatrician should determine after examining and revealing the form of the disease. The first and most important step is the provision of competent skin care for the baby, which excludes as much as possible the contact of the inflamed skin with the irritant, which is also the main preventive measure.
The following recommendations should be observed:
- To wash off warm water with crumbs every day and every time after bowel movement.
- After water procedures, the skin is wiped dry with a soft diaper (without grinding).
- Diapers should be changed at least every three hours, regardless of their filling.
- Often leave the baby without clothes - arrange so-called air baths.
- You can not wear a baby too warm, provoking excessive sweating.
Pediatric dermatitis in children treatment also provides medication - through local drugs that eliminate inflammation, relieve the infection and contribute to the restoration of dermal tissues. It is not allowed to treat the affected skin with greenery, iodine, a solution of potassium permanganate, and similar agents that can aggravate the disease.
Cream for diaper dermatitis
In the question of how to treat diaper dermatitis, the type of skin damage that is present is important. If the damaged area is characterized by dryness, it is rational to use the remedy for diaper dermatitis in the form of a cream that will additionally provide moisture to the tissues. We list the most effective creams that should be used to treat the baby's skin several times a day after hygiene procedures:
- Bepanten;
- Bepantol;
- Alantan Plus;
- Pantestine (gel);
- Drapolen;
- Sudokrem.
With a therapeutic and prophylactic purpose diaper creams are used from the following manufacturers:
- Bubchen;
- Johnson's Baby;
- Mustela.
Ointment for diaper dermatitis
Choosing what to treat diaper dermatitis in newborns, accompanied by wetting and maceration, you should stop the choice of preparations in the form of ointments that have a drying effect:
- zinc ointment;
- salicylic-zinc ointment;
- Desitin.
When bacterial lesions can prescribe ointments with antibacterial action:
- Levomekol;
- Synthomycin;
- Streptocide.
Ointments such as Nystatin, Diflucan, Clotrimazole, with diaper dermatitis are used in the case of fungal infections. In especially severe cases, glucocorticosteroids of local action are prescribed for treatment, among them - Advantan ointment.
Folk methods of treatment of diaper dermatitis
If there is diaper dermatitis in newborns, treatment can be supplemented with folk techniques. Healers recommend adding medicinal plants infusions to bathing water:
- chamomile;
- succession;
- calendula;
- oak bark.
For their preparation, pour 2 tablespoons of raw material with a glass of boiling water, insist for half an hour, strain and add to the bath with water.
Diapers with diaper dermatitis
When a long time does not pass the diaper dermatitis, it is worthwhile to think about changing the used brand of diapers. Do not recommend reusable diapers, it is advisable to purchase quality disposable "panties", in which the liquid is retained in the middle layer. In addition, in order to prevent diaper dermatitis, it is necessary to properly select the product according to the size, which should not be squeezed or rubbed.