Really bad yeast infection/diaper rash

busydev

Thu, Sep 11 2014, 5:16 pm

My just 1 year old DS has a terrible rash right now. This has been going on for a couple weeks already.

He was on a antibiotic about 3-4 weeks ago and a week after he stopped I noticed a rash had developed. I figured it could be a yeast infection so I gave him some more probiotics and called the drs office to ask what to do and was told to keep the area clean and dry, change often, put on lots of diaper cream, let him sit without the diaper and give him sitz baths. and to call back in 3 days if it wasnt getting better and sooner if it was bleeding.

so I did what they said and it kept getting worse. when I called back she said to get Lotrimine OTC and put on 2 times a day. and continue doing all the other instructions. this was on friday 2 weeks ago. on tuesday I called back to say it had not gotten better. at all.

over the weekend I spoke to my SIL who said that her DS has a similar sounding rash that comes and goes. first they thought it was yeast infection but after the antifungal stuff didnt work they used a steroid and it worked, and since then it comes, they use the steroid cream, it goes away and comes back a month or so later.

so on tuesday I went in and saw one of the nurse practitioners at my drs office and she said its def yeast and to keep doing what I have been doing but put the lotromine on 3x a day with vasaline on top. when I told her about my nephew she said I dunno what he had but you dont get eczema in the diaper area.

after another 2 days of NO improvement and yes worsening (redder and scaly looking) my mother pulled out some nystatin and triamcinolone cream she had (that was over 2 years expired) and after a day of using it the rash was much less red and the spots were smaller. but there wasnt much of it. so I called the drs office back and said he is in so much pain and crying from it and scratching (all true btw) and they prescribed me nystatin without the triamcinolone to put on at every diaper change. this was last friday.

then on tuesday we went to his dr for his 1 year check up and he gave me yet another cream called Clotrim. so far it hasnt made much of a difference either. in fact now the spots are spreading onto DS's thighs and hes been scratching tons! today he even cut himself and started bleeding from all the scratching (while I was letting him crawl around diaperless.

im not sure what to do? should I demand a steriod cream? cause that was in the cream my mother had. and it had a huge improvement within a day. tho the regular nystatin also was improving a bit and then got bad.

its not as red and scaly as it was at the worst but its still pretty bad.
any ideas for me?

amother

Thu, Sep 11 2014, 5:20 pm

Can you get another pediatrician to look at it?

MaBelleVie

Thu, Sep 11 2014, 5:21 pm

My dr always prescribes nystatin for yeast. You have to be consistent though and use it at every change- and change often. Also have him run around without a diaper whenever possible because moisture is the worst thing for any rash.

busydev

Thu, Sep 11 2014, 5:23 pm

MaBelleVie wrote:

so we have been using nystatin at every diaper change for a full week and changing often and NO CHANGE. I also let him go diaperless a few times a day. (thats when he scratched himself so hard it bleed this morning. )

MaBelleVie

Thu, Sep 11 2014, 5:25 pm

Have them look at it again.

busydev

Thu, Sep 11 2014, 5:25 pm

amother wrote:

Can you get another pediatrician to look at it?

half of the practice looked at it already... the NP I saw first (tuesday 1.5 weks ago) had another one come in to look at it (more to assure me it was yeast and not eczema) and then the dr saw it this tuesday and prescribed the Clotrim (in addition to nystatin) which hasnt made a diff yet either.

busydev

Thu, Sep 11 2014, 5:33 pm

hate going to the dr again.... 3 times in less then 2 weeks... but I guess I have to if thats the only way to get him out of pain. Confused

PAMOM

Thu, Sep 11 2014, 5:35 pm

Insist on going in tomorrow- you don't want h to be this uncomfortable over the weekend

busydev

Thu, Sep 11 2014, 5:41 pm

PAMOM wrote:

Insist on going in tomorrow- you don't want h to be this uncomfortable over the weekend

they are usually pretty good about seeing me that day. im just wondering if I should insist they give a steroid cream too as apparently the antifungal stuff is not doing the trick. or if I should let them tell me its a yeast infection some more?

anyone have experience with such a persistent yeast infection? or with eczema or similar in the diaper area?

Elbowmac

Thu, Sep 11 2014, 6:05 pm

My 6 month old had a similarly horrific diaper rash a few months back.

It's annoying to run back to the doctor again, but it's worthwhile if it means you can make your baby more comfortable. As you likely know, lotramine and clotrim are both anti-fungals. They won't do much for the inflammation. If you've been using solely antifungals for several days with no improvement, IMO it would be reasonable to add in a steroid. Then again, maybe your doctor has a reason for not doing so? I'd definitely ask, and see what his reasoning is.

For my son, I asked for a nystatin triamcinolone combo. My pediatrician agreed it was warranted given the circumstances, but also gave me a plain nystatin prescription. After the course of the antifungal/steriod cream was finished (10 days in this case, 4x per day), I then did a course of nystatin alone (my pedi said do for 1 week, 2x per day).

My pediatrician said that fungal infections are stubborn and love to pop up again on their own, even after the steroid/antifungal course is finished. And then the whole cycle of inflammation, irritation etc., starts up again and again. 'Hitting' it with more antifungals once the rash is already subdued, so to speak, helps to prevent a relapse.

In between, I slathered TONS of diaper cream on my baby. I alternated between calmoseptine (soothes much more than other creams, IMO), and triple paste. I also washed all the soap off of wipes before using them, and let my baby go diaper free, whenever possible. It took several weeks, but B"H he is currently rash free.

Good luck!

Basimcha

Thu, Sep 11 2014, 8:26 pm

Ask them to culture it. It might be strept.

Tzutzie

Thu, Sep 11 2014, 8:40 pm

Basimcha wrote:

Ask them to culture it. It might be strept.

What she said.
For dd APNO (all purpose nipple cream LOL

) did wonders when she had a fungal diaper rash. Its a mix of nystatin and bactriban. orginally its made for thrush. I had it at home and after using it once I saw a huge improvement.
The nystatin killed the fungus and the bactriban heals the rash.... its a wonder cream.

Good luck and rs to you baby

pumpernickle

Thu, Sep 11 2014, 8:41 pm

Baby going through the very same thing for a few weeks already. Here is what helped;
*Warm baths, pour one cup of baking soda into it and let him sit there. It really soothes.
* if the BMs are persisting and u think it may be related to teething, hence the acid, combine mylanta (antacid-not the mint flavor) with nystatin and bactroban. Smear on affected area and top it off with desitin and baby powder or corn starch.
Repeat thsr steps at every diaper change. Check his pamper often. DO NOT USE FRESH WIPES. It burns! Instead, make a quick bath with bottoms off and just spray his tush clean.

The baking soda baths are really a miracle, I saw a difference every time.

All the above ideas and tips were recommended by my pediatrician.

The mylanta helps with the acid from teething. The nystatin is an antifungal and the bactroban is an antibacterial so it sort of kills the germs.

L K

Thu, Sep 11 2014, 8:48 pm

Went through something similar with a baby, only it took months, not weeks of her suffering.

In the end, after using nystatin, lotrimin etc.etc, in different order, trying this, that and the other prescribed thing I got sick and tired -- and tried potato starch. Loads of it. Worked wonders, this way the area is kept dry and improves almost immediately. For really sore/bleeding spots (if rash occasionally comes back) I sometimes use Lansinoh lanolin first, it helps a lot. And then dump lots of potato starch on top and all around. You could use corn starch or baby powder but IME those work a little worse than potato starch.

Refuah sheleyma

Debbig

Thu, Sep 11 2014, 9:41 pm

My son got terrible rashes the only thing that helped is a mixture of olive oil and cornstarch mix them up to make a thick paste and smear the whole sore area. Good luck

LittleDucky

Fri, Sep 12 2014, 1:36 am

I second the mylanta. My DC BH didn't have it as bad as you describe but using a cotton ball to apply liberally all over the area (and then slather desitin to keep the mylanta on it) at every diaper change. My ped said it was due to breast feeding and it made his BMs acidic. Mylanta counteracts the acidity...
Good luck!

suzyq

Fri, Sep 12 2014, 10:47 am

When my son had the worst rash, like with bleeding and everything (my poor baby!) our ped told me to alternate with the following:

At each diaper change, put neosporin cream on cracked/bleeding areas. Then:
First change - nystatin, cover with A&D or Aquaphor
Second change - Hydocortisone, cover with A&D or Aquaphor
Keep switching back and forth each change

He also said to let him soak in baking soda baths.

It really cleared up his rash quickly, B"H. The scaly part doesn't sound so much like yeast - yeast is usually more dotted.

Hope your baby heals up quick!