Another Good A&D Report & Child Scalp P Inquiry
from Laura B.

Ed:  I read the mail from the lady who used A&D Ointment to help her.  Just to back her story up, my son's derm told us to use it when we first found out that his "diaper rash" — that had spread to 90% of his one month old body — was psoriasis.  She said that it would help with the "crusties."   I still use it on him after 7 years.  Also, now that my son is on UVB treatments, it helps to keep his skin from drying out. We live in Utah and he does his lights every day, needless to say with the dry air and lights, his skin get really dry.

I have a "sort of" thing not to say... Since my son had this starting when he was so young, I have had many people see him and say, "What have you done to that child?!"  After a while I started to keep him wrapped up in a blanket — even during the summer — to prevent the accusations of abuse and mistreatment.  If they only knew what I had to go through just to find out what was happening to him.  (I hate the phrase "what's wrong with him" because there is nothing wrong with him — it's his skin that doesn't work correctly.)  Not to mention the hours that I had to spend every day with him doing treatments.  One of these days I will write and tell you about the ordeal I went through to find out he had psoriasis — and then trying to figure out what to do about it.

Also, do you or anyone else know of a way to remove HEAVY build-up on the scalp without using steroids?  I try to stay away from medications as much as possible because I don't know if he will "grow out of it" or if he will have to "overcome" this for the rest of his life.  I'd like to have some different options that I could put in front of the derm to see is she thinks they might work on my little man.

Thanks for the website.  Think happy thoughts because as with life — and psoriasis — it can always get worse.  -Laura B.

*****

Ed’s Response:  The evidence that A&D Ointment is a good addition to the “Flaker’s Survival Kit” is mounting!

I wish that I could add some “sure bets” to your arsenal of options for combating heavy scalp build-up, but I think CAUTION is a capitalized, underscored, glow-in-the-dark watchword when considering a child. 

For me, scalp lesions have always required a two-pronged approach.  First there’s getting rid of the scale, second there’s medicating the lesions to reduce further scale build-up.  I imagine — though cannot speak authoritatively — that for children with tough scale build-up on the scalp similar two-pronged consideration is appropriate.

The National Psoriasis Foundation has an excellent educational booklet devoted to scalp psoriasis (titled, you guessed it, Scalp Psoriasis).  If you click on the title in the preceding sentence you may or may not get to the booklet.  You may need to be a member and go through the log in process — also, you need to have Adobe Acrobat on your computer to read the booklet.  Alternatively, you can call NPF, or email them, and I’m sure they’d send you one (503-244-7404, or getinfo@npfusa.org).

I do want to read your story about discovering your son has P, and about the travails finding treatments.  So take a deep breath and ... share.  -Ed

This Month's Mail | Archives