This is his artsy NYC look....dressed in black with hair brushed forward!
Poor baby belly! When we received Matthew's referral it came with many questions and errors concerning his medical history. We are so very grateful that, upon returning home and being examined, he has a very healthy report! So the only medical issue that we are aware of at this point is his ATOPIC DERMATITIS. From what I have read, his Asian ethnicity and male gender are both associated with an increased risk of atopic dermatitis.
We have noticed lately an increase in the number of rashes on his body, as well as their "intensity"...for lack of a better word. We are wondering if it is due to the onset of cold, dry weather here. (Perhaps the doc will prescribe that we move to a more temperate climate...such as San Diego!). We use a free & clear laundry detergent, slather him with lotion and dab him with prescription hyrdrocortisone, keep his bath temp low, and only use a hypoallergenic bath soap. I was watching his diet closely, but his doc said that isn't the issue.
Today I am starting a humidifier in his room...and I guess the next step would be buying 100% cotton clothes. I'm grateful that he doesn't seem to be itchy but, by the looks of his skin, it has to be uncomfortable.
FOR PARENTS YET TO TRAVEL: I recommend that you get some OTC hydrocortisone and Eucerin to take to Taiwan as, from what I understand, quite a few of the babies have skin issues. When we picked up Matthew he was digging in his ears so much that we thought he had infections, but it turned out to be this atopic dermatitis...it would have been great to have some ointment with us while traveling.
Our Thanks-for-the-Day
For a long weekend that allowed me time to get 2 Christmas trees up and a start on Christmas cards!
7 comments:
Poor baby boy!!! Hopefully the humidifier will help. My kids get very dry skin in the winter and a humidifier always makes a big difference. Thanks for the tip on traveling with ointment! That is really good to know!
Are you serious... you have 2 trees up and are starting on Christmas cards AND you're working on paperwork!!!!! How on earth...? At this point I can only hope that the icicle lights will make it onto my roof this year. Maybe it will happen this week since Andy is home!
San Diego sounds wonderful. We'll move out there too (just as soon as all the adoption expenses are paid off). :)
When I was little I had a horrible time with rashes. If the wind blew the wrong way I would get a rash. THe only soap my mother could use on me was Neutrogena. She couldn't use any lotion, so I would be careful about that. We always started with Hydrocortisone too and that worked a lot of the time. But I had a medicine cabinet full of different types of creams. I remember a time when they had to rub dandruff shampoo all over my body, let it dry then I could go to bed!! Seriously I had it bad. The good thing is that as I got older and now as an adult I don't have those issues anymore.
Poor baby, though that rash looks uncomfortable.
Poor Matthew! Mark has the same problem - ezcema, I mean. The humidifier should help. He finds that plain old Vaseline works best, but Eucerin is also supposed to be very good. Yes, very common in us Asians! I love his artsy look! He must come visit NYC!
jen
Yep -- we have a similar looking tummy over here! Our doctor also said it is the lack of humidity -- these poor guys are built for humidity. I think I mentioned it on the board too, but we use Aquaphor which I think is stronger than Eucerin -- it's kind of greasy, but has no odor at all, and it has really done wonders if we apply it three times a day. I knew it wasn't food since it happened after we got home but before we switched formulas.
Poor little guy! It does look painful. I'll make sure to take some ointment when we travel.
I emailed you back from my yahoo account, but hotmail won't accept my yahoo mails so it bounced back. :( - just said that I would love to do that and we could make a fortune selling to other mothers with the same problem. If only I knew how to do importing...
Reed has some splotches, too! We went for his 9 month check up and the pediatrician suggested all the changes you've already made - Free and Clear, Aveeno products for bath and lotion, etc. Must be pretty prevalent in Asian babies. Reed hasn't complained, either, but I agree, it can't feel good!
At least you have a name for Matthew's rashes. Kobi has been referred to John's Hopkins for his. His actually look like chicken pox that only effect his body (not face... thank God!) & he has scares from them. They started in April! I have found that using Next Generation Baby detergent, no dryer sheets, Aveeno products & A&D every night (lathered on) is the only way to help with getting less bumps. I am so up for new suggestions:)
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