molluscum and eczema

[writersue]

Hi all,

We at Practical Parenting magazine are writing a feature on a skin virus called molluscum contagiosum. This virus is common in kids but the infection is worse in kids with eczema.

Has anyone's child suffered from this infection? Please feel free to share all stories.

Kind regards,

Sue

[Kirsty2273]

Had to reply as have had amazing results with Imiquimod cream available from Melbourne Children's Hospital Pharmacy with a Dr's prescription.

My 3 yr old got it from swimming and we know at least 3 other children who got it had ended up with 18 mths of hell waiting for it to go.

It took going to 3 GPs for one to finally tell me about the RCH's cream. Applied 3xday and less than 3 mths later my son has no more spots and can finally bath with his brother!!! The spots do get worse before they get better but my son was covered head to toe in at least 50 spots - now just waiting for the redness to go and no more spots!!!!

I really do think GPs need to be aware of this treatment .... you get fobbed off with the 'it will just run it's course' rubbish - in the meantime no sharing baths/towels/clothes, no swimming and potentially childcare centres will exclude your child.

[SixtiesChild]

My 5 year old daughter contracted this unsightly virus about six months ago. She was distressed by it as she is starting school next year.
Fortunately, it was only isolated on her inner forearm. She had about 20 small raised spots which looked very ugly.
I was told to use "Panoxyl" cream on the spots only and it's taken 2-3 months but it's almost gone. I know that it can take longer but I think that patience and persistence is the key to getting rid of them.
During this treatment of panoxyl the skin dried out and became a little raw, so when this happened I gave it a break for a few days until the skin healed and then resumed with the panoxyl.

It might be tempting to squeeze the spots but don't do it because it is a wart like virus, so nothing will come out effectively and it can be spread further this way.

Adults get it too. I think my daughter actually caught it from me as I think I had about 2 of these spots on my inner forearm but my body's immunity killed them off more quickly.

There is a heap of info about Molloscum Contagiousum on the internet

[anatay_2]

A few months ago I noticed that my daughter had some raised lumps on the inside of her arm, I took her to the doctor and he miss diagnosed it as eczema. the cream given for the eczema wasnt working so went to another doctor and he has diagnosed it as molluscum contagiosum. We have been given Imiquimod cream 1% that we also got from the Royal Childrens Pharmacy. I have been using it for a couple of weeks and there has been a little change in the spots, some are red and angry looking others haven't changed at all. They seem to be spreading over her body. They started on her arm then her back of her legs and thigh and now her chest. It is a horrible infection. My daughter is only 20 months old, she shouldn't have to deal with this. She doesn't understand why she has to get cream put on her body 3 times a day. I also have to try and explain to people what the dots are when they ask. I'm terrified that some of her playgroup friends will get it too. Fingers crossed this cream works.

[Daisy3]

Our 4 year old daughter has had molluscum for about 5 months and we were getting really desperate as the spots were spreading all over her body. The doctor said there was no real treatment and to just let it run it's course but they were spreading so rapidly it was quite distressing for her and us. The good news is that the spots are now disappearing - I'm not sure whether the virus has just run it's course like the doctor said it would or whether the creams we have been using have helped. We used Wheatgrass cream (available from Health shops) for about 3 weeks and then stopped the Wheatgrass cream and started using Daktarin. The spots then started to disappear within a few days.

[Daisy3]

Just a quick update - it's now a month later and the Molluscum spots have now vanished completely. Looking back, I'm pretty sure it was the Daktarin cream that did it as I applied it to test patches and the spots on these patches vanished before the spots in other areas. It's a huge relief to us as we were starting to wondering if the spots would ever stop spreading!:)

[mythreelittlemonkeys]

my step son is 4 and has had these for nearly 9 months...his mother doesnt treat and so far he not been excluded from kindy or anything...though we have been asked god does he have chicken pox...but when we explain people pretty clued up about it...oh that...it will go...his older sister I have noticed is pretty immune she only has one on her chin/neck...he gets awful ezcema too and we just use the cream his mother is prescribed for that...I remember it being a really big thing when I worked in UK in a preprep...but children were not excluded for it...just had to use own handtowels etc...seeing as something like 80% of people carry HPV, herpes virus(coldsores) and heliobacteripyloris which are all pretty gross...and few kiddies end up with symptoms...I not too worried about the molluscum his dont seem to worry him to much...they just a bit unsightly...he healthy and happy apart from these :D

[Tingles]

A friend of ours child has it... we have stayed away as it is highly contagious!! (something that this 'friend' is quite angry about). She says it's not contagious when they are clothed... 'HELLO - contagious is contagious'... It is unfortunate that her child caught it - but why should I knowingly risk the health of myself & my kids...

[mythreelittlemonkeys]

God - I didnt know it was a health risk - I was under impressiona bit like warts...unsightly but not a risk to anyones health...think will call his mother on Monday and see if we can get a defintive answer - as we always been led to believe it just a childhood thing that is harmless...

[mythreelittlemonkeys]

now totally having the heebies about this as baby coming soon...ANdrew and I have not got...and as I said his sister only got one...mind you one article I just read said the following:

What is molluscum contagiosum?

Molluscum contagiosum is a viral infection of the skin. It appears as small, pearl-shaped spots which are pink in colour. It may occur at any age but is typically found in children.

It is not a serious disease and usually clears up within a few months. It can, however, last for up to two years.
It is an infection caused by a virus called poxvirus. The infection can result from direct contact, including sexual contact, or by indirect contact, such as sharing towels, or from swimming pools.

The incubation period from the time of initial contact until the molluscum or spots appear is anything from two to eight weeks.
The symptoms of molluscum contagiosum


Pink, pearl-like spots on the face, arms and legs, which can be 1 to 5mm in diameter.

Good advice


Be patient - the condition will pass.


Wash your hands after touching the molluscum.


Do not share towels used on the infected area with other people.


Avoid scratching the molluscum as this may cause further infection.


How does the doctor make the diagnosis?

The diagnosis is made by examining the patient's skin.

Outlook

This is a benign disease that spontaneously improves after a couple of months.

How is molluscum contagiosum treated?


Usually no treatment is given since the disease disappears by itself.


Larger and troublesome molluscum can be frozen or scraped away under local anaesthesia.


Antiseptic applied to the affected areas is helpful only if local infection occurs - which shows as painful red areas around the molluscum spots.


Okay - so from this - I gather noone going to get sick from it...but still I dont want my precious baby getting it...if so bad...surprised that kindy hasnt excluded him??
I am really confused now... esp after reading how other parents react to children with it...

[Tingles]

Okay - so from this - I gather noone going to get sick from it...but still I dont want my precious baby getting it.

That's how I felt with my kids 4, 20ths & new baby - I didn't want my stress levels raised - I didn't want to be contantly nagging my older two - 'DON'T TOUCH THE BABY!!' :eek: :mad: :eek:

Apparently 1 in 200 children will get it - only if they are exposed to it obviously.

[Daisy3]

As far as I can gather from talking to our GP and reading lots of info on this virus, Molluscum Contagiosm is contagious (hence the name, I guess) but most people are immune to it, which is why it's not necessary to exclude the child from daycare, school etc. A classic example is our family - our daughter caught the virus but the rest of our family (including the baby) were all fine. I did make an effort to keep her skin covered though, as it's passed on by skin to skin contact and there's also that slight chance that other children she was mixing with may not have been immune.

[mythreelittlemonkeys]

:D exactly what I have been told today whilst at a doctors appointment...skin to skin the issue and most kiddies & adults immune which is why we dont have...