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Moms View Message Board: Parenting Discussion: Archive January-June 2005: Seasonal Allergies
My 5 year old ds has pretty bad hay fever and eczema, which the dr believes is related to the pollen and ragweed. It started a week ago. He is currently taking 1 tsp of Zyrtec twice a day, Nasonex spray twice a day and one singulair at night. He is still so miserable, though. Itchy skin, eyes, throat, congestion - the works. The dr says it takes a while for the medicine to be effective - could even take up to two weeks, but by then the pollen season will be nearing its end. I bought a HEPA filter vacuum, wash his sheets and clothes almost daily, give Aveeno oatmeal baths, apply the anti-cream and medicine on his eczema. I was just wondering if anyone else has or is going through this with their dks. Do kids grow out of this eventually? He has his first outdoor soccer practice this Sunday and I may have to pull him out if his symptoms stilll linger. It's just so hearbreaking to see your little one in such discomfort. Thanks.
Joyce, I have been dealing with this with my DS Brett who is now 10 and his allergies started when he ws very young. Oatmeal baths were a regular routine with him when he was younger, the eczema did go away as he got older. The allegies are still with us. He is on allegra 2x a day, singulair at night and Flovent. And albuterol for asthma attacks.He does seem to be doing much better as he is getting older. The allergies don't seem to be as bad.
Both my ds's have seasonal allergies. My oldest(who is 7) did much better last year, so I am hoping he is outgrowing it. My youngest is on Zyrtec and Singulair(he also has asthma) When he started the Singulair it did take about 2 weeks before we could see the difference.
I also wanted to mention that my oldest also had severe eczema when he was younger. It has gotten much better the last 2 years. He does get flair ups in the winter now that we have moved to a cold climate. But, we are able to control it with lotion and cortizone cream. I also use dye free detergent.
Debbie and Kathy, my ds did complain that he felt like he couldn't breath well, but the dr said his lungs were clear. How and when did your dks develop asthma? I'm concerned about that as well since they are linked to allergies and eczema. I was also told that I should start his medication next year about two weeks prior to the start of the pollen season, but that fluctuates from year to year, so how do you know when to start? When do you start your medication regiment each season? And, finally (sorry for all the questions), Kathy, did your son start with Allegra because it sounds like it is working well for him.
Oh my gosh I feel like crying from reading your post. lol No I havent been drinking I promise.
Conni, I can relate to what you are going through as I'm sure Kathy and Debbie can, too. It is depressing. I have had indigestion for about a week now -- just about the time his symptoms got severe. Coincidence? I think not - it's all very stressful. As for what my son's skin looks like, they are slightly raised little bumps, some larger than the other but don't resemble big hives. They appear in patches, appear dry and itchy and are most prevalent in the fold of his skin and where he tends to sweat the most, such as back of the knees, back of his neck, lower back and behind his elbows. It is very itchy and of course, the more you scratch, the worse it gets. It spreads.
Here are 2 websites that might be helpful regarding eczema. The 2nd one has some good pics. But I have a thought to ponder. My dd has eczema but at one point hers flared up differently or at least I thought it was the eczema. Then she fell and scraped her knee and right after that it went everywhere. Took her to the dr and it was impetigo. Neosporin will clear individual spots of impetigo, but this had gotten all over. It wasn't real bad but upsetting for me. It took oral antibiotics to get rid of it. The dr said, and I later read up on it too, that some break in the skin will make impetigo go wild. I feel for you.
Oh thank you! The way you describe the eczema -- some of it sounds like what ds has and then it doesnt. lol He has these splotches you describe on his tummy and neck. On his back it is more of a round spot and they are all scabbed over from him scratching them of course (probably a dozen spots). Then he has a patch on his head right now and a spot on his nose, ear and cheek.... Anyway... We have been treated pretty cruddy by a couple of people becase they are sure my ds is going to give there dks ringworms or some other skin condition.
I would also recommend that you keep a diet diary too!
Joyce, my ds that has asthma only has seasonal allergies, he doesn't have the eczema. My oldest is the one with allergies and eczema. He seems to be outgrowing them both at the same time, so I really believe that they are related. As far as the asthma, my youngest ds was diagnosed last winter at the age of 3-1/2. He developed a chronic cough and would weeze when he got sick. We thought it might be due to the climate here since we had just moved from Texas to Illinois. Also, my brother had severe asthma as a child, so I wasn't too suprised. However, recently ds was also diagnosed with GERD. So, they aren't sure if it is really asthma or if it is from the GERD. He was taken off Flovent when we got the GERD under control and he has been fine, so we are leaning toward all his problems being from GERD. He is still on the Singulair though because it seems to really be helping his post nasal drip. As far as when to start the medication. Ds has been on the Singulair since this winter. His doctor may take him off of it eventually if he continues to do fine off the Flovent. We are waiting to see how he does. Ds has been on Zyrtec since he was 2. I only take him off of it in the winter. As soon as it starts to consistantly get cold, I take him off. As soon as it starts to warm up a little we put him back on it. I would keep an eye on your ds, since a lot of times allergies and asthma are related. If he continues to have problems cathching his breath or starts to weeze, then I would take him back to your ped. asap.
Conni, from your description it does seem highly likely that your ds has eczema. At times my ds's eczema looks just like the splotches you described. I think it's a great idea that you are taking him to a dermatologist. Let us know what they say. Debbie, thanks for sharing. Next year I will start ds on his medication as soon as the weather grows warmer and the buds start to appear. On top of everything, he started coughing alot the past two days. I attributed it to him coming down with a cold since it sounded alittle mucousy, and the dr said his lungs were clear yesterday morning, so it couldn't be asthma, but now I'm thinking the cough could be related to the allergies. I will definitely keep an eye on the cough. Well, good night, ladies and I hope tomorrow will be a better day for all of our little ones.
Joyce, my son was diagnosed with asthma when he was around 2, and thats also when we found out he had allergies. He did have eczema from the time he was an infant. The Eucerin worked wonders for his skin. Brett is on his medication year round except for the flovent which he only takes during the winter months. He was on the Zyrtec but it just didn't seem to be working for him, so they switched him to the allerga and it worked alot better.
I'm glad you are seeing a dermatologist. There are skin conditions that sometimes look the same but are something else. Your dr might be missing it.
Do you ladies take your dk's to a pediatrician? I thinking of switching to one because 2 of my dk's have allergies pretty bad. My middle ds alot of the time has dark circles under his eyes. I just dont think my doctor cares or takes me as seriously as he should... grrrrrr Its hard for me to change- he delivered all 3 of my children and we have seen him for 13 yrs now.
I took my ds to his pediatrician for his allergies. It's a group practice and he's definitely been seen by a couple of doctors whom I don't care for. In fact, the first dr we saw prescribed Zyrtec 1 tsp per day. It wasn't working. When I took him back last week, the dr that I prefer to see said he was being under dosed. For his weight, (5 years old, 55lbs) and the level of severity of his symptoms, he needed 1 tsp twice a day and Singulair at night. As for taking him to an allergy specialist, I opted not to since I am nearly certain that he is allergic to pollen. I don't want to put him through addt'l misery of being poked around and tested for numerous allergans. We live in Northern Virginia in the suburbs and surrounded by all diffenent kinds of flowering trees. It's impossible to escape it, and even if we determined exactly which plant's pollen was causing the reaction (if it's just one), he is most likely to develop reactions to other plants over time. I just need to find the most effective combination of medication to help him through. He's been on Zyrtec for about a week & a half now and it doesn't appear to be as effective as I would like it -- still itchy eyes etc. I'll wait another week and maybe we'll try Allergra. By the way, what is the best method to get your ds to swallow a pill for the first time?
Conni, I take my ds's to a pediatrician. I love the practice that we go to now. Out of the 4 doctors, there is only 1 I don't like and I just don't see her.
Kathy or Debbie, my ds has been on his Zyrtec, Singulair and Nasonex combination since 04/21, so it's been 7 days. Yesterday and today has been a bad day for him as the tree pollen count is high in our area. He has racoon eyes and his eyes are itchy still and slightly swollen. They aren't terribly itchy but itchy nonetheless despite the Patanol. He has other symptoms as well but tolerable. My question is this: I am contemplating taking him back to the dr for the 3rd time to see if perhaps we should try switching him to a different medication, but is it too soon for me to go back? If I call them, they will tell me to come in. They always do. I heard that it can take up to two weeks for the medication to become fully effective, so I was curious as to your experiences. Kathy, you mentioned that Zyrtec wasn't working well. Do you remember how long your ds took it before switching to Allegra?
Joyce, my ds has been taking Zyrtec for awhile. He has been fine lately since they put him on the Singulair with it. The Zyrtec alone didn't work after awhile. It took 2 weeks for the Singulair to kick in. I remember because ds was miserable and I was just waiting for it to work. My ped. told me to give it at least 2 weeks before we tried something else. He really wanted to wait at least a month as long as there was some improvement after at few weeks. I would try and wait for another week. With all three medications that he is on, he should be okay. It just takes awhile for the medication to work. If you don't see any improvment by next week then I would go back to your ped.
Joyce as Debbie said it does take awhile for the meds to take affect. At least 2 weeks. Brett was on the Zyrtec for about a month and a 1/2 and no change so that is when they switched him to allerga.
Thanks guys. I'll wait. I know it's kind of soon to take him back. As you know, it's just so hard to watch ds suffer even alittle. Kathy, I'm so sorry to hear about Brett's sinus infection. I hope he gets well soon and let us know how he is doing as well.
Wondering if any of you have ever tried claritin for children who have the allergy problems and Elidel for the eczema? I have good luck with both of them.
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Allergies are no fun. 
I feel embarrassed and just well, bad. A few weeks ago a friend that was going to keep Blake when I went to Argentina called me the NIGHT before I was suppose to fly out and said she wouldnt watch him because of his skin condition. I cried all night that night. lol