Dewworm in baby or child: what is dewworm, what are dewworm symptoms and how is it treated? Dewworm is a form of atopic eczema in a baby. In a baby, the eczema is moist. That’s where the term ‘dew’ comes from. Symptoms appear in most babies sometime between the first and fourth months. A baby with dewworm will then suffer from a red, moist and itchy rash with blisters on the face and between the hairs of the head. The extent of the complaints can vary per child and per period. Dewworm is not contagious. Also, dewworm has nothing to do with poor hygiene or skin care. Dewworm cannot be cured, but you can get the symptoms under control.
- What is dewworm?
- Skin condition
- Naming
- Causes of dewworm
- Interaction between factors
- Genetic predisposition
- Symptoms of dewworm
- Examination and diagnosis
- treatment of dewworm
- Ointment or cream
- Reduce dewworm in baby or child
- Prognosis
What is dewworm?
Skin condition
Dewworm is a skin condition that affects approximately 3-5% of infants between the ages of 4 weeks and 1 year. The condition can cause a lot of discomfort, but is easily treatable.
Naming
Dewworm is also known as atopic eczema and atopic eczema. Unlike older children and adults, eczema in babies is moist. Hence the name ‘dew’, which indicates that the rash is moist. ‘Worm’ refers to the fact that the rash is often ring-shaped. Dewworm is therefore a descriptive term.
Causes of dewworm
Interaction between factors
The exact cause of dewworm is unknown in 2022. Children who develop dewworm have an innate sensitivity. The development of dewworm involves an interaction between factors in the body and allergenic and non-allergenic stimuli from the environment, to which the child’s skin responds. The small blood vessels in the skin allow fluid to pass through, which causes redness, swelling and itching. This often concerns children who also have an allergy (for example food allergy or house dust mite allergy), asthma or hay fever. In addition, there are stimuli that can worsen dewworm, such as certain foods, soap, emotional events or temperature changes and temperature influences. The complaints become more severe, especially in autumn and winter, but damp heat or a bedroom that is too warm or dressing too warm can also be irritating.
Hay fever / Source: Istock.com/mkrberlin
Genetic predisposition
Hereditary predisposition determines whether a child will suffer from dewworm. The predisposition to react allergically to certain external stimuli also plays a role in the development of asthma and hay fever, for example. These conditions often occur in combination or alternately with dewworm. In more than half of children, dewworm is gone after about 2 years. If it has not gone away or if the eczema returns, it often manifests itself in places other than just the face and between the hairs of the head. Well-known places are in the back of the knees, the inside of the elbows, on the wrists, the insteps, the ankles and in the neck. The eczema is no longer moist and is called atopic eczema eczema.
Symptoms of dewworm
Dewworm emerges about 1 to 4 months after birth. A red, itchy, often moist rash with blisters develops on the face and between the hairs of the head. The child will try to relieve the itching by rubbing, scraping and scratching, which aggravates the eczema. The child is also more restless and cries a lot, even at night. Dewworm has nothing to do with mountain, a condition in infants in which there is an increased secretion of sebum between the scalp hairs. The progression of dewworm varies. Periods with many complaints alternate with periods with relatively few or even no complaints. Around the age of three, roughly half of the children with dewworm no longer have any complaints. However, the predisposition to react allergically remains. After the first year, the rash will mainly be present in the backs of the elbows and knees, on the wrists, on the insteps and in the neck.
Examination and diagnosis
The diagnosis can be made quite easily by the doctor with the naked eye. In small children with only eczema, an allergy test in the form of a blood test is not (yet) useful, unless there are other indications of allergy. In that case, an allergy blood test can provide some clarity about the type of stimulus that causes the allergy.
treatment of dewworm
Ointment or cream
Dewworm cannot be cured, as the congenital predisposition remains. However, medications can help to counteract the redness and itching as much as possible. You can opt for ointments or creams with tar and (in case of more severe eczema) ointments or creams with corticosteroids, which inhibit inflammation and calm the skin. Corticosteroids should not be used for too long, as they thin the skin. The doctor may also prescribe antibiotic ointment or cream if the child’s skin has become inflamed due to frequent scratching.
Apply Vaseline to the baby’s skin / Source: Kiyok, Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA-3.0)
Reduce dewworm in baby or child
You can also take a number of measures yourself to reduce dewworm:
- Avoid your child coming into contact with possible stimuli by keeping the house dust-free and not having pets.
- Preferably use unscented products (lotions, soap, detergent).
- You should not bathe your baby too often or for too long, as this dries out the skin.
- If desired, you can add a dash of bath oil to the bath water. This keeps your baby’s skin oilier.
- Keep your child’s skin oily and prevent dry skin. For example, use udder ointment or Vaseline.
- Cut the nails short so that the child cannot scratch the skin in case of itching or irritation.
- Do not dress the child too warmly and choose cotton clothing.
- Ensure good ventilation at home using grilles and do not forget the child’s bedroom.
- Provide a relatively cool environment, because heat worsens the eczema.
- Skin contact is essential for a child’s development. Touch your child as much as possible, even if the skin feels less pleasant due to dewworm.
Prognosis
Dewworm progresses in waves. Periods with relatively many complaints alternate with periods with relatively few or even no complaints at all. More than half of children no longer have any complaints around the age of three. However, the predisposition to react allergically remains. An allergy itself is not hereditary, but the predisposition to develop an allergy is.
read more
- Atopic eczema: symptoms, causes, treatment, prognosis
- Itchy skin or itching: causes of itching and types of itching
- Itchy scalp with wounds, scabs, bumps, flakes
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