My 7 month-old got pinworms somehow and was prescribed 100mg of Mebendazole (this past Friday: 12/23/11), which wasn't working... the itching persisted, so we asked if we could give him the 2nd dosage early and the pediatrician okay-ed that. So, we gave it to him yesterday (12/27/11) and he is still itching.
These are the measures we have taken:
1) My son, husband, and I are on the same Mebendazole schedule and have taken 2 doses in 5 days;
2) We have washed anything that can be washed in hot water;
3) We change our son's linens after bedtime and after each nap, along with his pj's (sleepsack) and nap clothes;
4) We wash all of our hand frequently;
5) We bathe our son every morning and my husband and I shower every morning;
6) We change our son's diapers at least every 2 hours and we are meticulous with our and our son's hygiene during each change
7) He has no access to his diaper, as he is not yet able to reach far back enough and then put his hand down his pants... and he wears a sleepsack to bed.
My husband and I don't have any itching nor see any worms in our stool, but we know that some can have it without symptoms.
My son still attempts to scratch his behind (over his diaper and pants) several times a day and night.
ANY ADVICE FROM THOSE WHO HAVE SUCCESSFULLY GOTTEN RID OF PINWORMS IN THEIR 8 MONTH OLD OR YOUNGER BABY?
Thank you!!!!
Thank you all for your advice and feedback! You all are so nice!
Ok, so I don't have a full update, but I do have some news:
My little one doesn't have pinworms after all, but he does have another type of worm that the pediatrician will test as soon as we can provide 3 separate stool samples. The only time we saw worms was the first day we took him to the doctor (1 worm) and this morning (12/29 - 3 worms). They looked like pieces of angel hair pasta. The test for pinworms only involves swabbing the anal area. I wish that the pediatrician would have run both tests instead of just one for pinworms. The treatment for most other types of worms is Mebendazole twice a day for 3 days. So, after visiting the pediatrician today we started the new routine. Upon description, they don't know what type of worm since there are many types and some look similar to one another.
I will provide another update in 3 days, which can hopefully help others.
Doctors should run both tests, just to be 100% certain.
The scratching may be more of a habit now than a symptom of a continuing problem. Do you still see worms in his stool?
If you don't think it's improving, take him back to the doctor and have him run another test.
At 8 months, they're learning all sorts of things and will repeat whatever they figure out until they learn something new.
When my family had pinworms, I used an over the counter remedy, I think it was called Pin Rid or Pin X, and it worked easily, after two doses.
Pinworms are yucky!!!
If they haven't tested his stool for the worms again - it's possible that the itching is NOT from the pinworms...it could be a habit or something else - like maybe he's allergic OR sensitive to things in the diapers or laundry detergent. Maybe his skin is dry and it itches...it is winter and here in DC it can get VERY dry....
So have your doctor test his stool to see if they are still there. If they are not - the medication worked and the diligence you and your husband did in changing clothes, diapers, sheets, etc. worked...and it's NOT pinworms...
good luck!
I haven't been through this-but I always try to offer advice and certainly, support.
It sounds like you're doing everything possible-keep in mind-you shouldn't miss a dose; they are intolerant to heat-so keep up with the cleaning-maybe even try a steamer; dogs and pets can carry the eggs in their fur and not be affected; the worms have a 13 week lifespan-eek-you probably are more of an expert on this than I am! Good luck!
I don't have experience with this, but do you have a dog or another animal that is possibly infected? Good luck!
Haven't had any personal experience with this but is it possible he is getting his hands in his diaper? If that is possible he could be reintroducing the eggs to his system when he puts his hands in his mouth.
Other than that I can't think of why the meds aren't working.
