Scabies?? - Anoka,MN

Oh. Dear. God.

Yes.

There are several levels of infestation / what you have to do for them. We had to do ALL of them.

To know; scabies is KIND OF like lice... in that it's a parasitic bug. UNLIKE lice, they're microscopic. First sign of infection is little (tiny!) blisters usually between your fingers. By the time it makes a rash like you're describing, it's probably been a couple months, and you'll PROBABLY have to go several steps "up" the ladder of annoying and expensive 'get rid! of them".

Level 1)

Similar to lice: WASH EVERYTHING made of fabric (because the microscopic buggers get INTO fabric. We're talking boiling water or as close to boiling. Anything too big to go in the washer on the hottest cycle needs to be bagged (to suffocate them) to suffocate them, or put in the freezer for 24-48 hours to freeze them. And by "everything" I really DO mean everything. Sheets, pillowcases, PILLOWS (including boppy), stuffed toys, car seat covers, couch cushions. STEAM CLEAN CARPETS and furniture (including your car).

I HIGHLY recommend tossing your crib mattress and buying a new one. Beds are almost impossible to rid of scabies.

Apply the cream / take the oral med.

WASH EVERYTHING AGAIN (Yeah, I know, but cross contamination happens, it's why scabies is ALSO known as the 7 year itch. The original. Because it can take YEARS to rid yourself).

In "wash everything"... while all fabric is being washed in the machine, also do hard surfaces. Toys in the dishwasher. Floors and walls scrubbed down.

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YES... THE ABOVE IS THE EASY method.

If you have a truly bad infestation, we're not talking WASHING... we're talking THROWING OUT. Completely stripping your house of carpet, redoing the interior of your car. Bagging things IN the freezer (renting deep freezes) for WEEKS. We're talking total removal of EVERYTHING from your house that is not wood, metal, or plastic (including paper, like matting on picture frames). THEN doing a week of meds (oral and cream), sleeping in cheap sleeping bags that you will THROW OUT, and then refurnishing your entire house. Luckily, homeowners and renters insurance usally covers this kind of devestating loss.

ALSO, scabies is usually caught early enough that you don't have to strip your house down to drywall and subfloor.

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It is HIGHLY contagious. You can get it from sitting in a chair that someone sat in a month ago with scabies. You and the rest of your family probably have them as well (infants show the first /worst signs, because of their weakened immune systems). For STEP 1 just make sure that after creaming yourself (and don't forget your bikini area... ALL folds), you're also washing everything that YOU own as well. You can probably skate with just steam cleaning your mattress instead of tossing it.

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Many people start out with "just" applying the cream and washing bedding. I've never known anyone who has had this be enough ONCE IT'S PAST tiny blisters between fingers. Microscopic bugs get into EVERYTHING. And they can live for a very, very, very long time.

I know STEP 1) sounds heinous (it's 2-3 days of CONSTANT work) but it will save you MONTHS of suffering going through the various steps more and more and more completely until you have to gut your entire house.

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THERE IS NO SUCH THING AS 'OVERDOING' when you're talking scabies.

AND it's an automatic "out" from work (because it's so contagious) / paid sick leave AND (I hope this goes without saying) CANCEL EVERYTHING. No playdates. No daycare. No babysitting. No houseguests. Everyone who comes into physical contact with you OR anything you've touched can pick it up. FOR EVERYONE WHO HAS ALREADY BEEN INSIDE your home (or you've spent time in theirs) they NEED to use the cream and washing machine all their clothes and bedding BEFORE symptoms appear. To save them the hell that you're about to go through.

My deep and sincere condolences.

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I remember having scabies as a kid. It was very itchy and ugly. I think my brother and I only had it on our arms. I was freaked out because my mom said it was little mites under my skin. Ewwwww . . . don't think she had to tell me that.

Good luck to you and your SO!!

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Two possibilities to look into:

There is a form of Celiac Disease called Dermatitis Herpetiformis. Instead of having gut issues, people with Dermatitis Herpetiformis "break out" with a skin rash when they eat anything containing gluten/gliadin (anything with wheat, rye, and barley in it. Even hidden uses). The rash breakout can be anywhere on the body. I have been told that the rash is very, very itchy. It sometimes even gets what looks like little water-filled blisters. The DH disorder is cured by not ingesting anything with the gluten/gliadin protein--which is anything made with wheat, rye, or barley.

Also read about zinc deficiency, look at some pictures of zinc deficiency rash, and have him tested. I've been having angular stomatitis on my lips and some issues "down there" with a funky rash. Internet research finally pointed me to a possible zinc deficiency, which I'm waiting for my naturopathic doctor to confirm. A baby can be born with a decrease in zinc because the mother can be low in zinc and, over time, if there's not enough zinc in the diet (do you breastfeed?), a zinc deficiency can show up. It can be corrected by supplementation.

Those would be two avenues I would be sure to follow up on.

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Wow...in 25 years of daycare, I've never seen scabies. I've sometimes wanted to ask a parent to get their child tested for it. It's such a touchy thing to talk about. So I've always waited to see if anyone else gets similar symptoms. Since I've never had more than one child at the same time with symptoms like that, I assume we've never been exposed.

Do a bunch of research and see what they say. It's been years since I've read anything. Seems like they can do a skin scraping and put it under a microscope.

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Dreft is not a hypoallergenic laundry soap. Get Planet or Ecover. Do not use bleach, clorox or any other products. Add one cup of vineager to every cloth thing that touches his skin.
Your doctor reads too many textbooks and has too little real experience. Scabies is highly catching. If he has it so do you. Take him to a dematologist. And, if you get anymore stupid answers from someone with MD after their last name go to a homeopath and get your little boy cured.

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Talk to an allergist also. I was told I had scabies and it ended up being Celiac. I was reacting to gluten.

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I have not, but my SIL is a nurse and she contracted scabies from the nursing home she worked at. I believe hot water washes for ALL bedding, clothes and the cream for the whole family (as a precaution) is what she had to do. It was a huge undertaking but it was effective. Good luck!

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I would recommend ditching the Dreft and use a fragrance free/dye free detergent instead. Were you using Dreft before? Were you using perfume/dye detergents of any kind? That sounds so much like the rash we get around here if we don't use the free detergents. Dreft is full of dyes and fragrance. If there is a build up of detergent in clothes we get the same thing. If you wash clothes with no detergent and still get suds in your machine then you're using too much detergent and it's not rinsing out. Liquid soap is better at rinsing out then powder.
Did they test for scabies or only guessing?
I hope you find the answer soon.

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Scabies is caused by certain types of mange mites....yuck! There weren't too many things I was afraid of working as a licenced vet tech years ago but this and ringworm did it for me. It was pretty easy to diagnose in animals but we had no trouble doing a skin scraping with a scalpel...guess you can't do this on babies huh?

You have a lot of great specific advise on how to handle it. Did you get confirmation by a dermatologist? Good luck!

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Most of my (extended) family went through a bout of Scabies earlier this year - covered like 6 months. A couple of us would have it, then 2 months later a few more. It was so frustrating & miserable to deal with! Luckily my 2 year old daughter never got it, but I had it during my 2nd & 3rd trimesters with baby #2 and it was awful! SO itchy all the time. I did the prescribed treatment cream from Dr. & they did say to have everyone in my house do it (just husband & daughter). I also went through MANY tubes of anti-itch cream just so I could sleep at night. Only helped somewhat. I did the 2 rounds of the treatment cream.

I washed all our sheets/blankets/clothes about every other day. Exhausting! Seems like in the end, I just had to wait it out (a good 2 months). Thinking back to when my brother got it, then my mom, their "rash" didn't look so bad, so I didn't take it as seriously as I should have in terms of taking precautions when visiting their house!! Never again will I underestimate something like that.

Not to scare you, but just so you do not underestimate it, and do everything to help your little one, as well as prevent the spread of it. (P.S. have you ever seen the show "Infested" with the bedbugs one? *shudder* Now I'm paranoid about that as well as getting Scabies again. I can't believe how much goes into getting rid of these things) Have to say, I did not have the rash in between my fingers & toes, or some of the other "normal" spots. I had it like your baby - belly, thighs, forearms. I wish you the best of luck!!!

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Wait, there are no itchy bumps between the fingers? Red flag. Don't treat with the scabies cream until you get a second opinion.

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Go to a dermatologist.

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My daughter got it at 6 months from a family member who had been in the hospital...(I PMed you the whole story and some other advice). Took 6 doctors and finally a dermatologist took 15 seconds and said...scabies...use this on everyone and wash all the bedding, clothing...and you'll be good to go.

Don't have them test for it...they have to actually dig under the top layer of skin to confirm. If the other stuff only working temporarily for us too...

She had in between her toes, her ankles, the back of her neck, her stomach...

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My son had a terrible bout with scabies. It's like having lice in your house, Tam. Did you know that? You need to wash all the bed linens in hot water. These creatures burrow in his skin and lay their eggs. It itches to high heaven and it just awful for your child.

It's amazing that they haven't infested the rest of the family, since it has been a month. Please clean all his stuff thoroughly. I would clean the carpets too, with hot water and shampoo.

So very sorry!
D.

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I personally had them and was told it was an STD...so not sure how your small child got them. The dr. knew what mine was because he scraped between my fingers (where it was most itchy) and he could actually see the "bug". I used the cream and it wasn't a problem since - and that was 11 years ago.

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damn those things! my 2.5 year old daughter had it this summer...well, she probably had it during the spring too but i finally took her into a pediatric dermatologist after she has a rash for atleast a month that we could not figure out. we thought is was probably just something she picked up playing in the grass or sand, but the doc took one look at her hands and diagnosed it as scabies. she, my husband and i all treated ourselves with the cream, and then she had to treat again one week later, since she was the "vector". i washed EVERYTHING in the house, had the carpets shampooed, put all stuffed animals into plastic bags and stored them in the garage for 2 weeks...i might've gone overboard but my baby daughter was only 2 months old at the time and i did not want her to get it. if your baby has scabies, nothing but the proper treatment will get rid of it...coritsone and benadryl will only give temporary relief, and not for long either if the scabies worsen. the doc told me that it was one of the itchiest things a person can ever experience. i still feel guilty to this day that it took so long to diagnose my daughter, but you live and learn...good luck, and those critters suck so bad!

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