Often, a baby experiences sudden and pronounced redness on the cheeks, which in medicine is called “diathesis.” This is not a disease, but one of the signs of an incorrect reaction of the body to specific factors (most often external), which in most cases goes away with age.
Pediatricians are wary of this symptom, associating it with an allergic manifestation, and advise parents not to delay treatment, since mild hyperemia can lead to a rash all over the body.
The therapeutic basis is the fight against the cause of the disease, therefore, in order to find out its nature, the child will have to undergo a series of medical examinations. Don't forget that this can also be childhood eczema, which is more difficult to deal with. Children's eczema (atopic dermatitis) is of an allergic nature, also most often associated with nutrition, but unlike diathesis, it is essentially a disease. It is characterized by manifestations exclusively on the skin, and diathesis may have other manifestations. Symptoms of childhood eczema include a red rash (starting on the face), swelling, blistering, discharge and very itching. It can occur both against the background of diathesis and separately from it. Usually goes away by the age of five.
Diathesis in most cases is caused by the influence of an external allergen, like childhood eczema. But it goes away at an earlier age. Eczema is a skin disease that can develop independently or as a result of diathesis; after a rash appears on the cheeks of a baby, it usually spreads throughout the body.
What does this problem mean?
The word “diathesis” is used by many - from parents of babies, their grandmothers and ending with pediatricians - meaning by it a rash that appears in young children.
However, in fact, this is not a scientific diagnosis, not a disease, but only a predisposition to some kind of disease.
And most often it refers to the initial stage of atopic dermatitis.
Atopic dermatitis is an allergic disease. The fact is that in infancy, an insufficient amount of digestive enzymes is produced and the immune system is weakened, and the permeability of the intestinal wall is high.
Therefore, undigested food (especially proteins) is easily absorbed into the blood, causing an allergic reaction.
With age, children's digestive system improves, the liver copes better with removing toxins, and the immune system is strengthened.
Therefore, diathesis can go away on its own.
But it is still necessary to treat this disease, as it can develop into other allergic diseases, including bronchial asthma.
Forecast
If you approach the treatment of diathesis in a timely and competent manner, you can achieve its complete victory by the 2nd, or less often, by the 4th year of a child’s life. After this, it becomes resistant to allergens that previously provoked the body’s reaction.
If a child’s diathesis is difficult to treat, constantly worsens, and atopic dermatitis develops, then in the future such a child may suffer from severe allergies, aggravated by immunodeficiency.
From a photo of diathesis on a child’s bottom, it is not difficult to understand that in this condition the baby is experiencing serious discomfort. In order to minimize the child’s suffering, it is important to identify the problem in time and take appropriate measures to eliminate it. Of course, there can be no talk of any independent treatment. But you must know certain things about diathesis on a child’s bottom.
Causes
One of the main causes of this problem in newborns is poor nutrition of the mother during pregnancy or lactation.
Other reasons:
- complementary foods introduced too early (pediatricians recommend introducing new foods starting from the 6th month of life, and before that, feeding the baby only breast milk or formula);
- unsuitable foods for complementary feeding;
- overfeeding the child;
- excess weight;
- hereditary tendency to allergic diseases;
- poor environmental situation;
- digestive disorders.
Rashes can also appear as a result of contact dermatitis, that is, an allergic reaction to the components of washing powder, dyes on clothes, cream on the hands of the mother or other family members.
Therefore, the mother of a baby who is prone to skin reactions needs to choose household chemicals and cosmetics with caution.
Rarely, symptoms may be caused by allergens that enter the body through the respiratory route (i.e., inhalation from the environment).
Factors
The development of allergic dermatitis in children is influenced by many factors, which can be conditionally combined into two large groups.
The main factors influencing the development of predisposition:
- internal (hereditary). These are inherited from parents tendencies to various diseases, type of constitution, etc.;
- external. These are the conditions in which the child lives - the characteristics of nutrition, life, and upbringing.
Parents cannot change the heredity of their child or the type of his constitution, but his living conditions are completely dependent on them, and it is the change in conditions that plays an important role in the treatment of diathesis in infants, according to Komarovsky.
Pathogenesis
As a result of the production of antibodies (immunoglobulins E) and their contact with allergens, a large amount of histamine, serotonin, and kinins are released, which cause itching, swelling and blood flow to the skin.
Typically, rashes first appear on the face and then spread to other parts of the body.
Scratching the skin leads to increased inflammation and its transition to the chronic stage.
The disease is accompanied by metabolic disorders and retention of chlorine and sodium in tissues, as well as increased water content in the skin.
Also, the release of histamine in children under 2 years of age can be caused not only by the reaction of antibodies to foreign proteins, but also by other substances and even by cooling.
Symptoms of manifestation
The first manifestations may appear at the age of 2-3 months.
The presence of the first stages of this disease in an infant can be determined by the following signs:
- the presence of bright red spots, which after a while become covered with a dry crust;
- severe itching and scratching of the affected areas;
- dry skin;
- diaper rash;
- with weeping eczema – swelling and blisters with liquid;
- geographic tongue (white spots on the tongue);
- Sometimes a yellow (seborrheic) crust appears on the head, as well as on the forehead or brow ridges.
Most often, redness and inflammation appear on:
- face;
- pens;
- legs and buttocks;
- as well as in places where sweat is released - under the knees, under the arms, in the groin folds, etc.
It should be remembered that the symptoms of diathesis in children are not only external in nature - inflammation spreads to the mucous membranes and internal organs.
Children with these problems often get sick:
- respiratory infections;
- bronchitis; and sometimes they have conjunctivitis.
Diagnostics will help not to confuse diseases
Diathesis has symptoms similar to some diseases, for example, hemorrhagic vasculitis or some neurological disease. And if diathesis can be dealt with at home using external remedies, other pathologies require treatment in a hospital. Therefore, to make a correct diagnosis, the following studies are necessary:
- general analysis of urine and blood;
- blood chemistry;
- stool examination.
Sometimes an ultrasound and x-ray may be needed for a certain type of abnormality.
For reference! In children who suffer from the lymphatic-hypoplastic type of the disease, the endocrine glands are enlarged and there are changes in the organs in the sternum area.
Methods for treating diathesis in newborns
Therapy for infants should begin with a review of the nutrition of the nursing mother and baby.
If the newborn is bottle-fed, sometimes changing the formula can have an effect.
Symptoms can be relieved with antihistamines, such as:
- Suprastin;
- Tavigil;
- Fenistil.
They are prescribed by a pediatrician or children's allergist.
Additionally, the doctor may prescribe probiotics and prebiotics to restore normal intestinal microflora, as well as vitamins B6 and B15 to accelerate the restoration of the skin and enterosorbents.
In those rare cases where the skin is infected with streptococci or staphylococci, antibiotics are used.
In addition, for the treatment of rashes it is important:
- change underwear and diapers as often as possible;
- thoroughly iron all children's underwear;
- remove down pillows and soft toys from the baby’s room;
- do not allow pets into the premises;
- choose only high-quality toys that are safe for the baby’s health;
- clean the room daily;
- Do not use aerosols or other substances with a strong odor around your child;
- use only hypoallergenic baby care products, and wash all home clothes not only for the baby, but also for all members of your family with baby powder or soap and soda;
- strengthen the baby’s immunity with the help of hardening, as well as special gymnastics and massage for children under one year old.
Among the folk remedies, baths with chamomile and string may be useful, but they should be used after consultation with the pediatrician.
To get rid of seborrheic crusts on the face and head of a baby, you need to apply bandages with retinol or boiled vegetable oil for several hours, after which they will easily come off.
Therapy for facial manifestations
Treatment of diathesis on the face in newborns should be accompanied by identification of the allergen that causes this reaction.
In addition to food allergens, redness and rashes on the face are caused by household chemicals, pollen, reactions to house dust mites and molds.
It is the removal of the allergen that will allow you to solve the problem of rashes.
For treatment, ointments, antiallergic drugs and decoctions of medicinal herbs are used.
You should know that occasionally rashes in young children (urticaria) are an allergic reaction to the sun or cold.
In case of cold allergies, before going outside, the child’s face must be lubricated with rich baby cream (check first how safe it is for your baby by applying a drop of cream to the forearm).
Find out what to apply on diathesis. What is exudative-catarrhal diathesis? The answer is in this article.
Efficiency and safety of modern ointments
Modern ointments can be divided into several groups.
- Local antihistamines. For children, Fenistil-gel (0.1%) is recommended, which is safe for their health, although it has a short-lived effect.
- Traditional therapy. These are various talkers, pastes, lotions and powders that contain tar, dermatol, ichthyol and other components. Their selection should be entrusted to a specialist.
- Glucocorticosteroids or hormonal drugs. Despite popular belief, these ointments and lotions are quite safe, but they should be used only as prescribed by a doctor and according to his recommendations. Corticosteroids cannot be stopped abruptly; their amount must be gradually reduced by mixing with baby cream, and only then should their use be completely abandoned.
In newborns, these drugs are diluted in a ratio of 1:8 or 1:10. Among the most effective ointments in this group, which give long-lasting results, are Elokom, Advantan and Afloderm.
- Maintenance therapy. Since even in the absence of inflammation, a child with atopic dermatitis suffers from dry skin, it is necessary to use a cream that restores the normal barrier function of the skin and softens it.
A good remedy approved for use in infants and nursing women is Bepanten.
This non-hormonal drug is available in various forms - ointment, cream and lotion - and it helps restore and form skin cells, heal scratches, get rid of diaper rash and treat cracked nipples in nursing women.
Other supportive care products approved for use in infants include Atoderm R.O. cream. zinc and Exomega milk.
Local preparations
To quickly heal the skin, the doctor prescribes ointments and creams. They are necessary to relieve itching, inflammation, speedy healing of wounds and prevent infection.
Pediatricians prescribe medications such as:
- "Bepanten." The product has a regenerating effect. It contains vitamin B. The ointment has an effective effect on tissue trophism and relieves inflammation.
- "Panthenol-ratiopharm". This is an analogue of Bepanten, but with vitamin E included in the composition, which promotes accelerated skin restoration.
- "Fenistil". The ointment is prescribed to children to relieve local allergy symptoms.
- "Emolium". The composition of the drug includes triglycerides of fatty acids and natural oils. These substances moisturize the skin and relieve symptoms of diathesis.
The selected ointment for diathesis for infants helps relieve the unpleasant symptoms of the disease.
Prevention
It is important to prevent the baby from overheating, as excessive sweating combined with contact with the allergen will cause rashes.
The optimal temperature in the baby's room is 19-20˚С, and air humidity is 60-70%. At the same time, you should not worry that the baby will freeze, because newborn children can adapt to any conditions.
Since one of the main causes of rashes is overeating, you should not give your baby more food than he should for his age, otherwise his body simply will not absorb it.
If you are formula feeding your baby, be sure to give him enough water.
After bathing, the baby should be rinsed with boiled water cooled to body temperature to wash off chlorinated water from the body, which can also cause allergies.
After washing children's clothes, it is worth keeping them in boiling water for a few seconds.
Many allergens are removed by the lungs, so it is important to take a lot of walks with your newborn.
It is also important to maintain normal bowel movements in the child, since allergens and toxins can be absorbed into the blood from a crowded intestine, causing the production of antigens to them.
As for the nutritional requirements of a nursing mother, they are as follows:
- You should avoid foods with a lot of dyes and flavors;
- give up the above products that provoke a rash in a newborn: cocoa, chocolate, smoked meats, citrus fruits, any canned food and very spicy foods, coffee;
- You should eat fish, red vegetables and fruits, eggs, and nuts with caution;
- milk should be drunk no more than half a liter per day;
- It is necessary to avoid fried and too salty foods.
The diet of a breastfeeding woman must include vegetable salads seasoned with vegetable oil and hypoallergenic fruits.
Almost similar requirements apply to the diet of a pregnant woman.
Read what uric acid diathesis means in children. What are the causes of diathesis in a child’s hands? See here.
How do symptoms of diathesis manifest in adults? Read on.
Combination drug
The drug "Celestoderm-B" with garamycin is a combination drug containing corticosteroids and antibiotics.
"Celestoderm-B" has many positive effects. The drug contains a substance that has an antibacterial effect. It is used to treat bacterial skin infections, in case of complications, suspected secondary infection. The drug is used to treat itching, dermatitis, and psoriasis.
The ointment has contraindications. It cannot be used if you are allergic to the components included in the composition, with viral infections, with varicose veins, mycoses, or ophthalmological pathologies. Contraindication is children under two years of age. Until this age, the drug is used only for vital signs.
If the child has no contraindications, then the doctor may prescribe this remedy. It is applied in a thin layer to the affected area of the skin twice a day - in the mornings and evenings. In mild cases of diathesis, the product is used once a day, applied to the skin before bed. The duration of treatment is selected individually in each case.
During use of the drug, side effects may occur in the form of rash, skin irritation, itching, folliculitis.
