48 answers

Diaper Rash Trouble

After 8 man years (mom years?) of dealing with diaper rash you'd think this wouldn't be a problem but here it is.

2 yo DD (who by the way flat out refuses to toilet train) has had a horrid rash on her vulva for about 6 weeks now. It starts to get better and then gets worse again. After a while it started to get that bumpy, pustulely look so I thought it might be yeast and bought an anti-fungal the pharmacist recommended. That was a few weeks ago and hasn't seemed to make a difference.

I have been loading on the Desitin, letting her go diaper free (and dealing with the messes!) all day at home. She's not complaining other than when I wipe her. It looks really wretched. Bright red, bumpy, very sore looking.

I can't think of what else to do!

What can I do next?

So What Happened?™

Thanks everyone for the push to call the doctor. It was silly to let it got this long but every time I picked up the phone I was thinking, "Come on! It's a DIAPER RASH! I should be able to handle this!" If she had been bothered by it I would have of course called immediately.

(just to touch on something mentioned, I would never punish or push over toilet training. My eldest trained at 25 months so I've never had a kid this old not using the toilet! The funny thing is, she's been ready for a year, she just doesn't want to! *insert crazy expression here*)

We'll make an appointment today. Thanks!

Also to add we use cloth diapers and cloth wipes so I don't *think* that a diaper allergy is the problem...also obviously no alcohol irritant or anything like that.

Featured Answers

My son had a terrible rash, believe me I have tried everything and the only thing that has worked was dumping corn starch in his diaper! i didnt use it sparingly either when i say dumped i mean i dumped it in and the rash went away pretty quickly!

Hi,
Just to add what other's have said, call the doc. My 1 year old had a yeast infection and as soon as I put the anti-fungal AND the prescription of hydrocortozone, it went right away. Good luck!

I can't say I know what the rash might be but i would definitly take her to the doctor if you haven't already. 6 weeks seems like a long time and it may be something that might take an antibiotic to get rid of. best of luck =)

More Answers

she def sounds like she has a yeast infection, my 2 yr had it a few time, call your doc and ask him for some nystatin (pretty sure thats the name) it will be cleared up in no time!

Hi J.,
you have gotten lots of good advice, so I will just throw two things in:
if it does turn out to be yeast, in addition to cutting out the sugar and sugary things in your daughter's diet, you can give her probiotics (the good bacteria that are in yogurt).
You can purchase some at your local health food store, or at Whole Foods Market. You can open up a capsule and dissolve it in water or mix it in applesauce, it will help to get rid of the yeast in her system.

The other idea (after seeing your Dr. ASAP!) - when my daughter had diaper rash, I was told to use A & D ointment to promote healing of the skin, and over that to use some Balmex (to create a barrier - I think it has more zinc than Desitin). I generally use only the A & D on my daughter (who is also 2 1/2 and not potty trained), but if she starts to develop a little rash, we use both the A & D and the Balmex and the rash goes away pretty quickly. When she was a baby and had diaper rash, I only used cotton balls dipped in warm water to wipe her, the wipes gave her a problem.

Good Luck!
Warmly,
E.

After 6 weeks you might want to speak with her doctor.
My daughter has gone through some severe rashes and we used desitin, anti fungal cream and cornstarch all at once. Usually cleared it up after a week or so.

Hello J. S,

From what I've been reading, a rash on any part of the body is how the body pushes out toxin. Letting your daughter run diaper free is a good start to letting the body do its job. Where this rash is on her vulva and only seems to bother her when you wipe her bottom perhaps you could change your wipes. It may be something in the wipes that the skin is absorbing ans then trying to get kick out. Also, I should note, that creams that create a barrier blocking moisture from the baby's bottom also lock in the toxins. I would start by using wash clothes with just water on them and let the the rash do it's thing. If a moisturizing agent is needed try using aloe. It's natural and cooling. Once the rash has gone you can try a new brand of diaper wipes. If the rash reoccurs repeat and try yet another brand of wipes. you may have to try several times before you find a brand your daughters skin tolerates. A baking soda bath, (1/4 cup in a tub of water) may help speed the release of toxins.

Another thing to consider is the rash has gone on for several weeks, heading into months if using just water to clean and tub soaks and aloe do not help in about a week you may want to talk to your pedi. It may not be related to the diaper wipes and to something in the diet. To check for allergies to food you may want to do and elimination diet. Milk and wheat are among the top offenders and need special consideration when changing the diet.

The water, soak and aloe tactic has helped with my 3 year old daughter who not only has no interest in toileting but refuses the alert us that she has soiled her diaper because that would take time away from play. I hope this helps your daughter and it's nothing more than a reaction to the diaper wipes. Good Luck!

C.

I had a similar experience, but the rash was also all over her bottom. We tried every cream, soaking her in Aveeno and soaking her with nothing. We took her to an allergist and a dermatologist and tried cloth diapers. We found that she would get it if a virus was looming and also, that she had a sensitivity to regular wipes. We started using Seventh Generation wipes and went back to regular diapers. What my doctor recommended when it would flare up was to coat the area in vaseline and only wipe off what needed to be wiped off due to diaper changes. It formed a barrier. And we skipped her bath for a few days. Some other mothers I spoke to with similar experiences found that it was due to a food sensitivity. I got so much conflicting advice but the wipes and the vaseline barrier seemed to help. She has (I should not even jinx myself) not had a flare up in almost a year!

HI

I noticed a rash bumpy on my neices butt - turned out to be a staph infection and she needed to go on antibiotics.

Call today!!

Hi J.,
Definitely sounds like yeast, but maybe the pedi would know better. My son had yeast before and they gave him Nystatin for it and it worked wonders! Maybe the OTC one just didn't work for her.
Also you could look into some kind of a food allergy or reaction (any kind of berries). I am guessing that if it is vaginal it would have to be yeast, especially the way that you describe it. Good luck.

hello! my son also had an awful diaper rash that wouldn't go away for weeks no matter what we did. i brought him to the pediatrician who prescribed cream for yeast, but that just made it worse. as a last resort i decided to change diaper brands to see if that would work. turns out he was allergic to pampers! i switched to huggies and haven't had a problem since. everyone told me to try different diapers but i didn't believe them until i saw the results. i've noticed that pampers have some type of perfume in them, and huggies don't.

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