Treat Baby Eczema

First off this protopic ointment was not created for children under the age of 2. Secondly, to even consider using this eczema cream you have had to try almost all the available eczema treatment on the market because Protopic Ointment and its competitor Elidel Cream are considered the very last treatment you should try when all other treatments have failed. There is good reasoning behind this. Let considered the side effects:

- Viral infections: Protopic Ointment may increase the chance of getting chicken pox, shingles, skin warts, or other viral infections.

- Skin irritation: Protopic Ointment’s most common side effects are stinging, soreness, a burning feeling, or itching of the skin where you apply the ointment.

- Headache and flu-like symptoms.

- Increased chance of developing skin cancer and lymphoma.

Just looking at the last possible side effect will tell you why Protopic Ointment should be considered the last choice for eczema treatment. Protopic ointment is another form of treatment that puts you and your child’s health as risk for temporary relief. I believe this is another reason why the FDA puts its highest black box warning on this product. And like its counterpart, Elidel Cream, there are still unknown long term effects for using Protopic Ointment.

But I truly believe parents shouldn’t get this far down the eczema treatment line. There are more cases and more research that comes out and points to more natural treatments to treat baby eczema. For starters, read my post about moisturizing your babies skin with the correct moisturizer here.

Before using the ever so popular Elidel Cream to treat your child’s eczema, be sure to educate yourself on what it is and what are some of the side effects of using it. So here is a quick run down…

First off, Elidel Cream is a very popular and widely used prescription cream for people above the age of 2 for treating mild to moderate cases of eczema. The Elidel Cream is classified as an immunomodulator which suppresses the body’s immune system to treat eczema symptoms such as itchiness, redness and cracked skin.

Elidel is said to be steroid-free and has many other benefits such as:
-Can be applied anywhere on the skin-including the face, neck, and around the eyes.
-Doesn’t cause thinning of the skin, stretch marks, skin discolorationk and spider veins.
-Odor-free, non greasy cream that is the skin can absorb quickly and easily.

These are definitely great benefits but there are always two side to every prescription. In 2006 the FDA (Food and Drug Adminstrations) gave the Elidel Cream its highest and strongest warning, the big bad black box warning. A Black Box Warning issued by the FDA usually indicates that the perscribe drug carriess a significant risk of serious or even life-threating effects.

To start off here is a list of side effects Elidel list on there own website:
- warmth or burning when applied
- headaches
- sore throat and cough
- viral skin infections.

Now Here is a short list of possible side effects that Elidel Cream presents that may have earned it The Black Box Label.
- Skin cancer
- lymphoma
- long term safely is unknown.

There are mixed reviews on Elidel Cream and I’m certainly not a parent who is willing to risk my child’s health on  these side effects. I encourage parents to educate themselves on alternative ways of treatment as doctors and researchers say that Elidel Cream should be a very last option of treating baby ezema.

Elidel Cream has been prescribed to millions of eczema sufferers. But Does the Risks outweigh the Benefits. You Decide.