The baby’s vulnerable and sensitive skin violently protests against any incorrect external influence. Wet diapers, stuffy and humid heat, and a lot of extra clothes threaten the appearance of prickly heat. The variety of its manifestations is dangerous because young mothers can easily confuse these rashes with symptoms allergic reaction or infectious rash and not seeking help from a doctor on time. In order not to make a mistake, you need to know the main signs of prickly heat and see what it looks like.
What is prickly heat
Miliaria is a non-contagious disease that occurs most often in the summer heat, but can also appear in winter due to excessive wrapping of the baby. Imperfection of the ducts sweat glands, which are fully formed only by the age of five or six, disrupt the normal process of thermoregulation. With increased sweat production, the sweat glands become clogged and irritation occurs on the baby's delicate skin.
Types of prickly heat
There are several types of prickly heat:
1. Red - individual nodules and blisters are surrounded by reddened skin, but do not merge. It most often occurs in skin folds - in the groin, armpits, and neck. Rashes bother baby severe itching and soreness on contact. Usually an annoyance for one to two weeks.
2. Crystalline - small silver or white bubbles appear on the child’s torso, face, and neck. Merging, they form quite large spots and burst easily, leaving flaky areas in their place. The rash does not torment the baby with itching or pain and dries out after two to three days.
3. Papular - appears a few hours after the baby sweats. Small flesh-colored bubbles appear on the dry skin of the limbs and torso and, after some time, disappear without a trace.
Other types, white and yellow, are complicated forms.
Causes of prickly heat in children
It is no coincidence that most often the heat rash appears in places where air access is difficult. Tight swaddling and overly warm clothing lead to significant overheating of the baby in the hot season. The secretion produced by the sweat glands does not have the opportunity to evaporate, accumulates and causes irritation of delicate skin. However, there are other reasons:
- heat, stuffiness and humidity in the room are faithful companions of prickly heat;
- lack of regular bathing of the baby;
- using cream that is too greasy for hygienic purposes - it disrupts skin breathing and impedes heat transfer;
- an allergic reaction to synthetic clothing materials or the quality of the diaper;
- excessive sweating during elevated body temperature;
— absence or insufficiency of air baths;
- clothes that are too tight and warm.
Weak and premature babies who have overweight and those suffering from diabetes.
Symptoms of prickly heat in children
The main signs of prickly heat, the nature of the rashes of which depends on its type, is a rash accompanied by redness of the skin. It can be located only in one area of the body, for example, in the groin, or occupy a fairly large space. Very young newborn babies experience sleep disturbances and anxiety. Miliaria can easily be confused with manifestations of chickenpox, measles or allergies, so if in doubt, it is better to consult a doctor.
The fact that skin rashes are miliaria is supported by the localization of the rash. The most common places of occurrence and causes of prickly heat are:
- neck - non-compliance with hygiene rules and heat;
- back - most often the upper part. The reason is overheating and synthetic clothing;
- butt - constantly wearing a diaper and using fatty cream;
- face - most likely, the rash indicates an allergic reaction, although sometimes it can appear due to the spread of prickly heat from the neck;
- on the head - only due to constantly wearing a hat.
If you take the necessary measures in a timely manner, prickly heat disappears very quickly, which cannot be said about an allergic or infectious rash.
Photos of prickly heat in children
Attention! If your baby suffers from unbearable itching, pustules and cracks are visible on the skin, and the temperature is elevated, a visit to the doctor is necessary!
Symptoms that require consultation with a pediatrician include:
- swelling of the skin;
- cracks and ulcers that emit bad smell;
- severe pain, itching and burning;
- increase in temperature.
These signs may indicate an infection, so the help of a doctor is necessary. The localization and shape of the rashes usually does not cause difficulties for the pediatrician to make a correct diagnosis; only sometimes he prescribes necessary tests or consultation with a dermatologist.
Methods for treating prickly heat in children
For treatment to be effective, it is necessary to first eliminate the causes that caused prickly heat. If the room is too hot, you should make sure that the air temperature does not exceed 20-22 degrees. When using synthetic fabrics, you should switch only to clothes made of natural fiber, and the little one should be “ventilated” more often, leaving him without diapers. Mommy will have to stop being afraid that the baby will definitely catch a cold without an extra blanket or a too warm blouse, normal temperature air will not allow this. When caring for your baby, you should not use oils and fatty creams - powders in in this case will be much more effective.
The following measures will help you get rid of the problem quickly and reliably:
- It is better to bathe the baby using herbal decoctions - string, yarrow, oak bark, chamomile. Herbs can be added to water either individually or in combination by brewing 3 tablespoons of each in one liter of water. Chamomile will also help get rid of itching - 10-15 minutes before bathing, you can wipe the affected areas with its decoction. Many mothers add a weak solution of potassium permanganate to their bathing water; it has a drying effect;
— after the bath, the baby’s skin should be thoroughly blotted in all hard-to-reach places and powdered with powder. The composition of the hygiene product includes starch, talc and zinc oxide. Some of them contain anesthesin, which has a cooling effect, and panthenol, which heals scratched wounds. It is better not to sprinkle the product, but to carefully apply it with a cotton swab;
- special ointments and creams - "Drapolen", "Bepanten", "Desitin" - help speed up the process of disappearance of the rash, only they must be applied in a thin layer and, preferably, not put on a diaper until completely absorbed. If a sweat rash appears on your butt, it’s better to forget about diapers altogether for a while. The use of ointments must be agreed with a doctor.
Means traditional medicine: Pour 7 leaves of bay tree with a glass of boiling water, let it brew and wipe the areas of skin affected by prickly heat.
There is a possibility that, despite all the efforts of the mother, she cannot get rid of the troubles. In this case, it is necessary to visit a dermatologist, since it is possible that there is a bacterial infection that cannot be cured without antihistamines and antibiotics.
Attention! If it was not possible to get rid of prickly heat in 3-4 days, the contents of the blisters turned yellow or white, the rashes increased in size, and the baby is too restless - see a doctor immediately, complications are possible!
Prevention of heat rash in children
Even in hot weather, if the child is dressed correctly, the mother observes a hygienic regime, and the father takes care of maintaining the necessary microclimate in the apartment, the baby will avoid the appearance of prickly heat. Clothes should be loose and breathable, bathing should be daily, and diapers should be changed regularly. Air baths, avoiding tight swaddling, and using only water-based creams or powders can also help protect against nasty rashes. Children's clothes should be washed only with special hypoallergenic powders.
Miliaria in children - the opinion of Dr. Komarovsky
Evgeniy Komarovsky warns that a rash is not a cause, but a consequence, so first of all it is necessary to establish what caused it. Factors in the appearance of skin rashes can be diathesis, mechanical damage, various infections, allergies and even a reaction to blood clotting. First, you should try to determine whether the rash is dangerous or not, and then look for its culprit. If there are no signs infectious diseases, the baby is cheerful and active, and of all the symptoms there is only a rash - the cause may be allergies, prickly heat or insect bites. Mommy will have to remember the previous day and try to figure out what could have caused the baby to get sick - buying new clothes, eating an orange, or being bitten by small insects.
Attention! Doctor Komarovsky warns! If the rash on the child’s skin has elements of hemorrhage, and the baby is vomiting, call an ambulance immediately!
The beloved doctor states that with the onset of heat, the appearance of prickly heat is not at all uncommon. Cluster small pimples surrounded by reddened skin, it most often appears on the neck, gradually spreading to the face, back and chest, and behind the ears. Dr. Komarovsky advises diluting a teaspoon of soda in a glass of water and wiping the affected areas with a cotton ball soaked in the solution, lightly patting it several times a day. You can also use simple starch, using it instead of powder, but the main thing is to keep the baby undressed as often as possible in the heat. Let your baby take a break from diapers and tight clothes, and let his skin enjoy the touch of cool air.
Baby rash, Video:
Miliaria in children is a skin irritation that manifests itself on the body as numerous small spots and blisters. This phenomenon occurs as a result of an imbalance in the body's natural chain, such as sweating-evaporation. The rash is localized in the groin, on the back, neck, facial area, as well as in the area of the folds of the arms and legs. How to get rid of heat rash in a child?
Just a note. Miliaria is not transmitted from one baby to another, so parents should not worry about its contagiousness.
What does prickly heat look like in children? How to treat this phenomenon? What complications can there be? There are a lot of questions, and every mother tries to find the right path aimed at preserving the health of her beloved child.
The disease is more common in newborn babies, whom parents always try to dress warmly. And since the process of thermoregulation in babies is in the formative stage, the evaporation of sweat occurs at a slower rate, which is reflected in a small rash on the child’s skin.
Signs of prickly heat
What does prickly heat look like in children? This phenomenon can be easily recognized by:
- small red rash, most often occurring in areas of contact with clothing;
- skin redness;
- increased sweating.
Please note. If pustules appear on the baby’s body, you should immediately contact medical specialist without resorting to self-treatment.
The symptoms of prickly heat can be easily confused with symptoms of other diseases, such as atopic dermatitis, chicken pox, herpes zoster. If a rash occurs against the background of fever, lack of appetite, or stomach upset, you should consult a doctor.
Causes of prickly heat
Miliaria in a child can be caused by:
- Occasional bathing and poor hygiene, causing the proliferation of pathogenic microflora.
- The use of fatty, poorly absorbed creams that reduce natural heat transfer due to the formation of a surface film.
- Small size of diapers or allergic reactions to the material from which they are made.
- Overheating, which occurs as a result of excessively wrapping the baby, rare changes of disposable diapers, and prolonged stay in a stuffy room. Under the influence of these factors, the heat transfer mechanism is disrupted and the greenhouse effect occurs.
- Infectious diseases accompanied by fever and, as a result, excessive sweating.
Just a note. If you continue to diligently warm your baby with clothes and “soar” in diapers, then prickly heat will develop into diaper rash, and if an infection develops, it will develop into diaper dermatitis.
Preventive measures
To prevent the development of prickly heat in a child, parents are advised to follow a number of simple recommendations:
- Maintain correct indoor temperature regime. For a newborn baby, the indicator should be +20... +22 o C. It is necessary to ventilate the room in which the child sleeps as often as possible.
- You should always use “breathable” diapers, purchase them according to size, and remember to change them after each bowel movement (about 8 times a day). It is useful to leave the baby without diapers for several hours; in hot weather, it is advisable to completely abandon them, giving the skin the opportunity to fully “breathe.”
- There is no need to insulate the child as much as possible and wrap him tightly in diapers, because overheating not only causes prickly heat, but also reduces the body’s defenses. Clothes should be made exclusively from natural materials.
- It is important to provide quality care for your baby's delicate skin.
Prevention of prickly heat in children also involves providing the baby with air baths (2-3 times during the day). The room must first be ventilated, then the child must be undressed and left naked for about 15 minutes. The time can be gradually increased to 30 minutes.
Remember. This procedure also aimed at hardening the growing body and strengthening the immune system.
Medical therapy
How to cure heat rash in a child? If signs of prickly heat are detected on the baby’s skin, it is recommended to use special ointments, disinfectant solutions and baths to help remove inflammatory process and reduce irritation.
How to apply heat rash to a child? Of the ointments and creams, the most popular are “Kalamin”, “Drapolen”, “Desitin”. These drugs dry out the baby's delicate skin, relieve rashes and diaper rash.
Miliaria in children, the symptoms of which are easily identified by vigilant parents, can be effectively treated with Bepanten, a popular drug. Main active ingredient pharmaceutical product is dexpanthenol (provitamin B5), which can quickly restore damaged skin areas.
"Sudocrem", the components of which are zinc ointment and zinc oxide, also used in the treatment of heat rash. The drug should be applied only to the damaged area of the body.
Zinc ointment will help
Zinc ointment with zinc oxide (which dries out the skin) and petroleum jelly (which creates a protective film) can help both a child and an adult. The pharmacy product has no contraindications and effectively cleanses the body of various types of rashes.
Advice. It is important to constantly carefully examine your baby’s skin for redness. the slightest sign rashes use baby creams and oils.
In terms of effectiveness, zinc ointment is not inferior to Sudocrem and Bepanten, although it costs several times less
Therapy with disinfectant solutions (1-2% salicylic or boric acid, chlorophyllipt 1%, methylene blue) is effective against prickly heat. Antibacterial and antifungal drugs should be used only as directed by a physician.
Benefits of herbal baths
What should I bathe my child in if he has heat rash? In an efficient way Treatments include baths with string, chamomile, and St. John's wort. Herbal infusion prepared half an hour before bath procedures: 3 tbsp. l. each herb needs to be brewed with 1 liter of boiling water, left for 30 minutes, filtered.
Just a note. In order to prevent an allergic reaction and the appearance of skin irritations, it is recommended to wash your baby’s clothes with hypoallergenic powders with a low percentage (no more than 5-15) of aggressive anionic surfactants (surfactants). OCEAN BABY, Ecover, Nordland Eco, Frau Schmidt, Regent are considered safe for health.
It is useful for the baby to give the baths themselves twice a day in the hot season and once in the cold season.
Just a note. At the end of the procedure, dousing with water reduced by 1-3 o C will be useful. temperature indicator. This action is aimed at hardening the body and is an excellent prevention of prickly heat.
Powder and potassium permanganate are mandatory attributes of baby hygiene
A phenomenon that almost all parents encounter is heat rash in children. Treatment at home is considered effective if you periodically dilute the bathing water with a weak solution of potassium permanganate, which helps relieve the skin of signs of irritation. After water procedures, the body should be carefully blotted with a towel.
Baby powder contains starch, talc, panthenol (for healing) or anesthesin (for cooling), and zinc oxide.
It should be remembered. Baby powder should only be used on baby's dry skin.
Timely treatment and prevention of prickly heat in children are important factor maintaining individual hygiene necessary for the full development of the baby and preserving not only his health, but also the peace of mind of the parents.
The young mother does her best to protect her baby from the adverse influences of the environment. Fearing that the baby will freeze and catch a cold, she tries to dress him as warmly as possible. In this case, you may encounter another problem – prickly heat. What is this and how to deal with it, we will now figure it out together.
Symptoms of prickly heat in childrenare quite simple: redness, small pink and red rashes, and in some cases small blisters filled with clear liquid appear on the baby’s delicate skin. This happens as a result profuse sweating, for example, after sleep or a walk. Rashes and redness appear when fluid from the body does not have time to evaporate, causing the sweat glands to become clogged. Most often, prickly heat is observed on the back, buttocks, neck, legs (that is, places where air access is difficult) and in folds (for example, groin). It is also possibleheat rash on a child's face.
Before starting treatment, you need to find out whether the baby really has heat rash, or whether you are faced with, or, what is even more unpleasant, any childhood disease (rubella, measles, etc.). The disease will help identify an elevated temperature in the child, and in this case you should immediately consult a doctor. With allergies, the situation is a little more complicated: visually it looks like prickly heat. You will need to remember if you changed the brand of baby care cosmetics or washing powder, or if you wore new clothes, has the baby become acquainted with new foods for him as complementary foods? You will also have to analyze your diet: did you eat anything (if you ate some similar foods before and did not observe any reactions in your baby to them, then they do not need to be taken into account). It must be borne in mind that prickly heat when taking appropriate measures goes away quite quickly (from several hours to a couple of days), while the spots do not increase in size or change color, and rashes associated with allergies last longer.
Miliaria in children can occur at any age. But most often it affects babies who have just recently been born. This is due to the fact that the baby has changed his environment (before that he lived in his mother’s tummy, surrounded by liquid), and is now only adapting to new conditions. All systems of his body, including sweat glands, work differently than in adults. If a child is hot, the sweat glands immediately react to this copious discharge liquid necessary to cool the baby's body to avoid overheating. And if the evaporation of this liquid is difficult (excessively warm clothes, greasy cream, etc.), then the glands become clogged. That's whyprickly heat one month old baby – a fairly common phenomenon.
The appearance of a rash can be caused by:
- disposable diapers (to avoid such problems, it is important to choose “breathable” ones and change them in a timely manner)
- insufficient care of the baby’s skin, which can disrupt the thermoregulation of his body
- difficulty breathing on the skin due to too warm or synthetic clothing
- fatty creams that create a film on the baby’s skin
- tight swaddling
How to treat heat rash in a child?
Miliaria is not a dangerous or contagious disease. However, it is necessary to fight it, since, firstly, it can cause discomfort, secondly, if measures are not taken, microbes will begin to rapidly multiply on the baby’s skin, which is fraught with inflammation, the appearance of pustules and other unfavorable phenomena.
Treatment does not require any special drugs, and in general does not imply anything complicated. Necessary:
- Avoid clothes that are too warm and tight
- Use exclusively “breathable” diapers and change them as soon as necessary. Give the baby the opportunity to walk around without him for at least a short time
- Carefully monitor your baby's hygiene
- Be sure to bathe at least once a day, preferably more often, in hot weather - up to 4 times a day, without using detergents, in boiled water. If the baby has not yet healed umbilical wound, you can add a little potassium permanganate to the water so that the liquid becomes barely pink. You can also use decoctions and infusions of herbs that disinfect or soften the skin: chamomile, aloe, string, sage, walnut leaves, and oak bark. But you need to be careful with these products: they can only be used if you are sure that the baby is not allergic to them. Otherwise, new rashes will appear
- Avoid synthetic clothing and use only natural fabrics
- Allow your baby to take sun and air baths
- Between baths, use wet wipes, wiping the baby's sweaty skin with them, paying special attention to the folds.
- During the treatment of prickly heat, stop using creams, preferring powder. Monitor the room temperature, not allowing it to rise above 20-22 degrees
- Regularly ventilate the room when the baby is not in it
- Do not dress your baby immediately after bathing - let him walk around naked for a few minutes
You can also wipe away redness antiseptic solutions(one percent alcohol, fucorcin, chlorhexidine or chlorophyllipt). As a rule, there is no need to call a doctor (this should be done if the rash is filled with a yellowish-whitish liquid), but it will be good if you consult with him by phone.
Miliaria on the body of a child – a phenomenon that can be successfully avoided by applying preventive measures. They are also simple. You should:
- maintain the room temperature no higher than 20-22 degrees
- keep an eye on
- daily
- avoid wrapping the baby
- give up synthetic clothing, giving preference natural fabrics(the same applies to bed linen)
- choose creams according to the time of year - light in summer, thicker in winter
And, of course, pay especially close attention to the condition of your baby’s skin in the summer, when it’s hot. These simple measures will allow you to help your baby never experience prickly heat in practice, or at least significantly reduce the risk of its occurrence.
There are no children in the world who have never had the most common classic prickly heat. What to do if your baby has diaper rash and how to treat it, as well as how to prevent the appearance of a rash, we will tell you in this article.
What is it?
Miliaria is a dermatological lesion in which skin rashes of varying intensity appear due to an imbalance between sweating and subsequent evaporation of moisture. Sweat glands have been active since birth. At some points in life they are activated, and then more sweat is released. If at the same time it does not have the opportunity to evaporate normally and quickly, it causes severe local irritation of the skin.
Miliaria can occur in children of any age. However, heat rash is most common in newborns. This is due to the characteristics of the skin of children in the first year of life, and to the characteristics of infant hygiene. After birth, the skin of babies is 2.5 times thinner than the skin of adults. Subcutaneous fatty tissue is not developed enough, because of this the skin looks almost translucent, and can even be seen through it. blood vessels and venous network. It is for this reason skin newborns have such a variety of colors - from soft pink to rich red and even purple.
The thermoregulation center in the brain of children is not sufficiently developed, so babies give off heat faster and accumulate it faster, that is they are more likely to become hypothermic or overheated. This means that sweating is not a constant value. In addition, the ducts of the sweat glands in children are narrow, which means that sweating cannot be considered sufficient. The ducts are formed on average before 5 years of age, and therefore sweat rash can occur not only in a newborn, but also in a child of 2-3 years.
Sweat is an aggressive environment; it contains not only salts, but also bactericidal substances that “corrode” the natural lipid film present on the skin of a newborn. The delicate and vulnerable skin of babies reacts painfully to contact with sweat.
Heat rash on medical language is called "miliaria". This term refers to the blockage of the sweat gland ducts, as well as the resulting skin reaction.
Advanced miliaria develops into diaper rash, and then, in the absence of help, into diaper dermatitis, which can be complicated by bacterial inflammation, infection, and sometimes even systemic bacterial contamination, which poses a danger to the child’s life.
That is why it is important to recognize heat rash as early as possible and take appropriate measures to alleviate the child’s condition.
Reasons
The mechanism of development of prickly heat is quite simple. When a child’s body overheats, and this happens quite quickly, it tries to cool down somehow; for this, the sweat glands begin to actively produce a secretion - sweat. But the ducts are narrow, they clog easily. This is how local inflammation occurs, and sweat that gets on the inflamed skin only aggravates the situation. The main reasons that cause overheating in children are:
- heat indoors;
- too warm or excessive clothing, choice of clothing inappropriate for the weather;
- violation of the acid-base balance of the skin due to improper use of cosmetics and child skin care products;
- illness associated with high fever.
Thus, a child who is “swaddled” is protected from freezing with the help of a couple of heaters installed in the children's room, and also babies who are bathed too often with soap are more likely to suffer from miliaria. There are also babies who are at risk for the frequency and likelihood of heat rash:
- children with allergies;
- overweight and obese children;
- children with installed diabetes mellitus;
- toddlers with confirmed rickets;
- children who often suffer from loose stools;
- kids with seborrheic dermatitis;
- premature babies;
- children who are bottle-fed.
The cause of prickly heat can be caused not only by too frequent hygiene procedures with soap and other detergents, which dry the skin and increase the risk of miliaria, but also children, whose hygiene is given too little attention. Untimely changing of diapers, infrequent washing, bathing and neglect of air baths lead to prickly heat no less often than all other causes.
It should be taken into account that the acidity of the child’s skin is almost at a neutral level, this creates a favorable environment for the growth of bacteria. In adults and adolescents, by comparison, the acidity of the skin is shifted towards an acidic environment, so it is much more difficult for bacteria to survive on it.
Often parents, wanting to do what is best, themselves increase the likelihood of developing prickly heat. Thus, the blockage of the ducts of the sweat glands and the oxygen exchange of the skin are affected by cosmetics fat-based - baby cream, massage oils.
Miliaria is often provoked by warming compresses that parents apply to their little ones when colds, even an ordinary heating pad that mom and dad put in the baby’s bed in winter can cause miliaria fragments to appear. Heat rash is also promoted by synthetic clothing, in which the skin does not “breathe,” and a poor-quality or unsuitable diaper. In children under 6 months of age, such skin irritation is more common due to the adaptation of the skin to environment. After nine months of being in the uterine waters, it is quite difficult for the skin to “readjust” to the air environment with all its dangers - microbes, viruses, fungi and allergens.
Most often, prickly heat appears in the summer, when it is hot outside, and in the winter, when parents, fearing the child’s hypothermia, do everything to make the house hot. In spring and autumn - before and after the start of the heating season, miliaria occurs much less frequently.
Species
Depending on the degree and duration of exposure to sweat on the skin, the degree of blockage of the ducts of the sweat glands, several main types of prickly heat are distinguished.
Crystalline
Red
This type of skin lesion is manifested by tubercles, the skin around which is inflamed and somewhat swollen. The tubercles are not prone to merging with each other. Sometimes this type of heat rash appears as a red or deep pink rash.
Deep
With this form skin disease vesicles form in the deep layers of the skin, as a result, blisters form very quickly and disappear just as quickly, leaving no traces.
White
With such prickly heat, the liquid inside the vesicles resembles milk, it is white or with a slight yellowish tint. When the blisters burst, light crusts remain on the skin.
Infected
This is the name of any form of prickly heat, which is complicated by the addition of a secondary infection - bacterial, fungal, or less often viral. Pathogenic microorganisms enter the body through burst vesicles, microcracks in the skin, and also during weeping eczema. The most common type is staphylococcal miliaria, less commonly streptococcal or mycotic.
Diaper rash
This is the form that prickly heat takes on when it lasts long enough. Any type of prickly heat can develop into diaper rash if measures are not taken in time. Diaper rash is accompanied by severe inflammation of adjacent tissues and the formation of weeping eczema. Diaper rash occurs as a result of the complex effect on the affected skin of urine, feces, synthetic materials, and mechanical friction.
Symptoms and signs
Main symptom Miliaria – the appearance of a rash and skin inflammation. It is usually located in the skin folds, on the back of the head, on the neck, under the chin in the cervical fold, on the chest and back, under the armpits, on the butt and in the groin area. On the body, prickly heat is located where there is close contact with clothing or a diaper. In children who are tightly swaddled, rashes may appear on both the body and the stomach.
You need to sound the alarm and call a doctor only if there are doubts about the origin of the rash, and if weeping diaper rash has begun to form and pustules have appeared.
Miliaria affects the child's behavior. Rashes can bother him, itch, itch. The baby begins to behave capriciously, his sleep worsens, and his appetite suffers. When trying to touch a sore spot, the child’s anxiety intensifies.
Miliaria in children under one year of age often appears on the nose, behind the ears, and on the scalp. It looks different, and therefore is often confused with an allergic reaction and some infectious diseases. But all these illnesses require medical care, whereas Mom is able to cope with heat rash on her own. That is why it is important to learn to distinguish prickly heat from other skin rashes.
If infection occurs, the symptoms change. The child’s body temperature rises, pustular or crusty whitish formations appear on the inflamed skin, noticeable cracks may form that begin to bleed. Infected miliaria often occurs in children with weakened immune systems, babies who have recently suffered from certain diseases, as well as in babies with chronic and congenital ailments.
How to distinguish from a disease?
First of all, you should learn to distinguish between prickly heat and allergic reactions. The sweat rash is usually located only in areas where sweating is difficult - in the folds, under the diaper, in the place where the diapers are attached when swaddling tightly. Allergic rash can be located anywhere, even on open skin. Rashes on the cheeks are therefore more often of allergic origin.
For differential diagnosis You can do an air test at home. A child with heat rash, left for several hours without clothes and a diaper, shows rapid improvement - the elements of the rash turn pale and begin to disappear, inflammation decreases.
An allergic rash does not go away so quickly and does not show sensitivity to exposure to air currents.
Distinguish prickly heat from a great variety of infectious diseases that are also accompanied by skin rashes, possible by presence or absence additional symptoms. For viral or bacterial infection The temperature always rises, and often the fever begins first, and only then after a day or two do rashes appear. Miliaria is not characterized by an increase in temperature. A rash during infections tends to quickly spread throughout the body; prickly heat does not change its location.
If you cannot distinguish, you should call a doctor, this is especially important if we are talking about the appearance of a rash in a newborn child up to 28 days from birth.
Diagnostics
Diagnosis of this skin disease usually does not cause difficulties for a doctor, even with a visual examination. But if there is any doubt, the baby will have a blood and urine test, a stool sample and a throat swab for laboratory microscopic examination.
If the test results do not indicate that there is a bacterial, fungal or viral infection, then the doctor will simply give parents recommendations on proper care care for the child's skin to avoid recurrence of prickly heat.
Treatment
Treatment of miliaria is carried out at home; only a complicated form of infected miliaria may require hospitalization, when bacterial or fungal infection comes first with all the ensuing risks.
The appearance of prickly heat is always a signal that the child is hot. Therefore, it is recommended to first tidy up the microclimate in the room. Optimal conditions for healthy baby skin these are.
Air temperature – +19 +21 degrees
To adjust the heating in apartment building, you can purchase special regulators for the heating system. They will reduce the air temperature in the room to required values. Most mothers claim that + 20 is too cold. For adults, maybe it is. But children who overheat faster perceive this air temperature best.
Relative air humidity – 50-70%
This parameter can be measured using a hygrometer, and a special device – an air humidifier – will help create the desired climate. There are devices with built-in hygrometers. If you don’t have the funds to buy a device, wet towels hung on radiators or an aquarium that can be installed in a child’s room will help humidify the air. It is especially important to humidify the air in winter, at the height of the heating season, since any heating dries out the air.
Cloth
You need to dress your child according to the weather, without wrapping him up or overheating him.. This is especially important when choosing wardrobe items for walking. If a child returns from the street sweaty, it means they are dressing him too warmly. At home, you don’t have to wear a cap and a warm blouse. At night, you should not wrap your child in a warm blanket and put heating pads in the crib.
Clothes should be made from natural fabrics; synthetics and semi-synthetics should be avoided. For babies under one year old, it is better to buy things with the seams facing out, since mechanical irritation from the seams only increases the likelihood of developing prickly heat and diaper rash.
Be sure to give him air baths every time before changing the child’s clothes and before changing the diaper - this is both hardening and a way to treat prickly heat.
Bathing
The child should be bathed daily, but without using soap. It is also better to avoid using a solution of potassium permanganate. For bathing, you can use decoctions of medicinal plants - sage, chamomile, string; for older children, you can add a decoction of celandine to the bathing water.
Very effective for diaper rash and prickly rashes, the most common bay leaf. It is brewed until a pale yellow decoction is obtained, which is then added to bathing water.
Fit baths should not be long. It is best to limit the time of bathing in water with decoctions of medicinal herbs to 5-10 minutes. Therefore, it is advisable to alternate baths - one day the usual bathing in ordinary water, the next evening - a bath with a decoction. You should not use medicinal plants without a doctor’s permission if your child is prone to allergic reactions.
Effective means
The main requirement for products to treat a problem such as heat rash is mild drying properties. Therefore, baby cream and any other fatty-based oils and creams are not suitable. You should only use products that dry the skin and create a protective layer. Here is just a sample list of such funds.
"Bepanten"
This drug can treat diaper rash even in the youngest children. The cream contains not only dexpanthenol, which has anti-inflammatory properties, but also vitamin B5, which accelerates tissue regeneration. Since the cream is still a moisturizer, it should not be used for wet diaper rash.
The product should be applied after water procedures, air baths on dry skin, as well as for prickly heat, complicated by the formation of traumatic crusts after wet eczema. There are no restrictions on the number of uses of the product per day - you can apply it to the baby’s skin even with every diaper change.
"Chlorophyllipt"
Oil solution and spray for external use are the forms in which the use of this drug is recommended for the treatment of diaper rash and miliaria. The drug contains eucalyptus leaves, which have a rapid healing effect and also destroy many pathogenic microbes. Alcohol solution is prohibited for children.
The product is applied to the affected areas of the skin 2-3 times a day. The drug should be used with caution to treat children with allergies, since eucalyptus can provoke allergic attacks. The course of treatment should not exceed 10 days.
Zinc ointment
This drug is well known to many generations. The ointment can be applied to the child's skin 1-2 times a day in a very thin layer. If a child’s prickly heat is complicated by pustules, then zinc ointment is also applied to adjacent areas of the skin to prevent the spread of bacterial infection.
"Sudocrem"
The basis of this drug is zinc oxide. It is this substance that effectively dries damaged skin and prevents the proliferation of pathogenic microflora. Zinc oxide and a base that has a water-repellent effect create a protective film on damaged baby skin. This film limits exposure to the affected area from the outside. The drug is approved for children of any age because it is non-toxic.
"Desitin"
This is another one effective drug, containing zinc oxide as the main active substance. It dries, disinfects the skin, promotes fast healing even complicated eczema. The drug contains cod liver oil, rich in vitamins A and E, which help rapid tissue regeneration. The drug is applied in a thin, even layer to the skin up to 6 times a day. Use the ointment with caution for children who are not yet one year old due to the risk of drying out the skin.
"Drapolin"
The main active ingredient is benzalkonium chloride. This cream has excellent anti-inflammatory effects. The protective layer that the drug creates lasts for several hours. Before going to bed, apply the cream in a thicker layer so that the protection lasts longer.
In some cases, an allergic reaction may develop. If the application of the drug causes redness, you should no longer use it.
"Dexpanthenol"
This is a gel, cream and solution for external use based on the active ingredient of the same name. Has a pronounced anti-inflammatory effect. For babies with miliaria, it is preferable to choose “Dexpanthenol E” - a drug additionally enriched with vitamin E. The product is applied to clean skin several times a day.
Baby powder
Classic baby powder has many benefits. Its main task is to dry the skin. That is why it should always be in your home first aid kit in case of prickly heat or diaper rash. However, the powder should be used very carefully.
The basic rules are:
- Do not sprinkle talcum powder on weeping eczema due to diaper rash;
- You should not apply a large amount of powder into the skin folds, there it will be “compressed” and will further irritate the skin;
- You shouldn’t use powder all the time – talc dries the skin too much.
- When choosing powder for a child, it is better to give preference to one that contains anesthesin and zinc derivatives.
All these remedies will help you quickly and painlessly get rid of prickly heat. Subject to all hygienic requirements and application pharmaceutical drugs based on zinc and dexpanthenol, unpleasant skin effects disappear after a few days.
Complicated prickly heat will require more thorough treatment.
When a pustular rash appears in the diaper rash area ointments with antibiotics “Lekomekol”, erythromycin ointment, as well as “Baneocin” in powder and ointment are recommended.
Against the most common bacteria, which can penetrate the skin, the integrity of which is compromised, aniline dyes are effective - “zelenka” and “Fukortsin”. But it should be remembered that they cannot be applied to the mucous membranes, genitals, or anus.
If signs of an additional infection appear, consultation with a doctor is required. Only he will be able to determine which microbe caused the inflammation and recommend a specific drug.
Prevention
Preventing prickly heat is quite simple, just create it infant favorable living conditions:
- Do not dress the baby too warmly, do not wrap him up;
- If possible, avoid tight swaddling, unless, of course, it is recommended by the pediatrician;
- A nursing mother needs to monitor her diet so that the baby has fewer prerequisites for the appearance of any rash. When choosing artificial milk adapted formulas, you should definitely consult a doctor.
- Air and sun baths are beneficial for children. True, you should avoid drafts and direct contact with the skin. sun rays, if the child is not yet six months old.
- Choose high-quality diapers for your baby.
- Wash the child in a timely manner, change diapers, give him a full bath once a day, without being overzealous with the use of soap and detergents.
- Swimming in the summer can be more frequent - up to 2-3 times a day.
- Dress your child only in clothes made from natural fabrics.
What to do if you sweat, see Dr. Komarovsky’s program.
To learn how to treat prickly heat in children, watch the following video.
Update: October 2018
Miliaria in its classic form is a common skin irritation that occurs due to an imbalance of sweating and evaporation. There are several types of prickly heat: crystalline, red and deep. In advanced cases and in the presence of predisposing factors, it turns into diaper rash, and then into diaper dermatitis. A separate form, often mistaken for banal prickly heat, is exudative-catarrhal diathesis.
Why does prickly heat on the body occur primarily in children? This is facilitated by the skin characteristics of babies:
- the skin thickness is very small
- it is tender and vulnerable, so it quickly becomes irritated and inflamed
- has a rich blood supply, which makes it easy to overheat
- Poorly developed ducts in well-functioning sweat glands make sweating difficult
- saturation of children's skin with water (up to 90%!).
Sweat glands work well already from 3-4 weeks, but the ducts form before 5-6 summer age, so prickly heat is not uncommon even at 3 years of age.
What does prickly heat look like in a child - symptoms
What does prickly heat look like in children? At the very beginning, mom will see small pink dots against the background of slightly reddish skin. However, there may not be any redness. There are other options for the manifestation of prickly heat:
- crystalline– small pearlescent blisters that appear on non-inflamed skin, flaky after damage, can merge, dry out after 2-3 days
- red – bubbles white or nodules, do not merge, the skin underneath is red, the child may show slight anxiety when touching the affected areas, nodules form at the mouths of the sweat glands, are accompanied by, such heat rash lasts 2 weeks
- deep - skin-colored bubbles that quickly form in the subsurface layer of the skin and disappear just as quickly.
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Miliaria can appear on the neck, in natural folds, on the upper chest and back, in the armpits, and on the head. Miliaria on the face occurs in the forehead area. Severe heat rash, combined with skin friction and prolonged exposure to feces and urine, develops into diaper rash. It can affect limited areas of the skin (localized) or be generalized, that is, over the entire surface of the body.
When to start worrying? In the area of natural folds and armpits, the skin becomes very red and begins to become wet.
Rash and redness of the skin are the main symptoms of heat rash in children. If a child appears severe anxiety or, conversely, lethargy, cracks, pustules, the temperature rises, he tries to comb the affected areas, cries when touched, then this is no longer prickly heat, but a reason to see a doctor. A complication may have developed in the form of diaper dermatitis or another serious skin disease.
Miliaria can masquerade as a banal diathesis, allergies, urticaria (see How to understand that the mother is doing everything correctly, but the child has just a food allergy?
- Parents do everything right, take careful care of the child, take all measures to prevent prickly heat, but the rashes still recur.
- Characteristic places and forms of diathesis other than prickly heat: scales on the head, blisters and small white scales on the cheeks, rashes on the extremities.
Along with rashes in areas atypical for prickly heat, diaper rash still appears in natural folds. But they are a manifestation of diathesis, not prickly heat.
Reasons
Miliaria occurs when several factors combine: overheating, excessive sweating, blockage of sweat ducts. The tubules and orifices (the places where they come to the surface) cannot cope with the increased load and become clogged with skin cells.
When does a child overheat?
- wearing clothes that are too warm, especially synthetic ones
- wearing disposable diapers for a long time in hot weather or in a hot room
- prolonged exposure to a hot, stuffy, humid room
- rare swimming and air baths
- poor hygienic care for the baby, the use of greasy, poorly absorbed creams that reduce natural heat transfer and impair skin respiration
- during illness (ARVI, chickenpox, measles, etc.) in the presence of high temperature
- Sometimes the cause of prickly heat can be an allergy to the material of the diaper or simply its small size.
- Constant prickly heat can be one of the symptoms of rickets.
- If friction, feces, and urine are added to overheating, then prickly heat quickly turns into diaper rash, and diaper rash is already an inflammation of the skin, but without the addition of an infection.
If you continue to “float” the child in diapers, rarely change them, do not take care of the baby’s hygiene, and at the same time keep him in a hot room and dress him too warmly, diaper rash may develop into more serious problem– diaper dermatitis, accompanied by infection.
But even with sufficient care and slight overheating, there are children whose mothers should be especially concerned about preventing heat rash, even if the child is already 2 years old, as it quickly turns into diaper rash and dermatitis:
- children with allergies (see)
- overweight children
- children suffering endocrine diseases and metabolic disorders (diabetes mellitus, obesity, rickets, see)
- children suffering from seborrheic dermatitis, a tendency to diarrhea
- artificial children
- premature babies
Diagnosis of prickly heat in children
Treatment
What to do if your child still develops heat rash? First, it is necessary to find and eliminate the cause of its appearance (high temperature along with humid air), that is, the air temperature should be 20-22C, humidity 50-70%, and then fight the manifestations on the skin.
Treatment of prickly heat involves the use of baths, disinfectant solutions, creams, and ointments. 
- Baths with chamomile, string, oak bark, yarrow. They help relieve irritation and eliminate inflammation. You need to prepare an infusion of herbs for the bath 30 minutes before bathing: take three tablespoons of each herb, pour one liter of boiling water over them, strain after half an hour. It is necessary to bathe the child in herbs until the symptoms of heat rash disappear. You can also bathe your child in a bath with a weak solution of potassium permanganate. After the bath, dry your skin with a towel and powder with powder.
- Disinfectant solutions- this too effective remedy for the treatment of prickly heat in children. Suitable drugs: 1% alcohol solution chlorophyllipt, 1-2% solution of salicylic or boric acid, methylene blue.
- A good remedy for prickly heat is baby powder.. It contains talc, starch and zinc oxide; in the pharmacy you can find powders with anesthesin (cools) and panthenol (heals). How to use correctly: take a cotton ball, dip it in powder and powder the affected areas of the skin.
- Cream and ointment for prickly heat in children, you should use only those that do not irritate their delicate skin and contain zinc, boric acid or panthenol: zinc ointment, Calamine lotion, Bepanten, Drapolene. Antibacterial and antifungal ointments are used as prescribed by a doctor and are indicated only when a secondary infection occurs.
Important to remember! The powder can only be used on the baby’s dry skin. If your baby shows signs of diaper rash or diaper rash, self-treatment not recommended. In these cases, only a doctor can prescribe medications.
How to treat prickly heat in children if it is not possible to use medications, ointments and herbs?
At mild form prickly heat as therapeutic measures the same ones that are used for prevention are suitable: constant air baths at a room temperature of 20-22 degrees, frequent diaper changes, use of lighter clothing. The heat rash should disappear within a few days. But if there is no effect from these measures, after 2-3 days it is still worth using auxiliary means (herbs, ointments, antiseptic solutions).
