Frequency distribution

Neurodermatitis is an increasingly common disease. In the past, only every 12th child was affected, but now every 6th-9th baby is affected by the skin disease. In about one third of all children, however, the symptoms persist only from 0-6 years of age, after which the children are often completely symptom-free, and neurodermatitis rarely turns into another chronic disease such as hay fever or another allergy.

Duration of neurodermatitis in the baby

Neurodermatitis is a chronic disease. It cannot be cured. Its course is not predictable and varies greatly from patient to patient.

Often neurodermatitis, which has already appeared in early childhood, improves significantly in the course of life. In one third of children it disappears by the age of six. However, a recurrence is always possible.Neurodermatitis, also known as atopic eczema or atopic dermatitis, is the most common chronic skin disease in children.

About 10-12% of children suffer from neurodermatitis, in about half of the cases the disease manifests itself already in the first year of life. There are hardly any signs of neurodermatitis before the disease really manifests itself. The babies show extensive redness of the skin.

In the face and on the hairy scalp there is often an encrustation of the weeping areas, this is called milk crust. In the course of the rash extends from the head/face area to the trunk as well as the arms and legs. The diaper region is usually not affected.

With somewhat larger children, from about the age of 2 years, especially the flexures of the large joints, i.e. knee joints and elbow joints, are affected by the rash. The neck is also frequently affected. The remaining skin of the affected children is usually much drier than that of healthy children.

Symptoms

In principle, the symptoms of neurodermatitis manifest themselves very similarly in children, adults and babies. First of all, the patients notice a very dry skin, which in some places also falls off in flakes. The skin is so dry that even frequent rubbing in is only a slight remedy.

Since the skin is very rough and extremely itchy, the baby often tries to scratch the affected areas, which can be painful and therefore leads to crying or crying. In addition, the skin in the affected areas is hypersensitive and reddened. It is also important to note that the symptoms usually occur locally.

In babies, neurodermatitis usually first appears in the neck and head area, which is then called cradle cap. If the symptoms are very pronounced, the upper body can also be affected, in some cases neurodermatitis also appears in the elbows and knee bends. However, the head is mainly affected in babies with neurodermatitis.

In addition to the reddened, dry and scaly areas, there are other striking symptoms that indicate neurodermatitis in babies. These include torn and very dry corners of the mouth, very dry lips, and frequently torn and dry earlobes. These conspicuous, strongly reddened areas can also contain white bulges of the skin, which itch very strongly.

This is known as eczema, an inflammatory area of the skin that is often associated with a small amount of water retention in the skin (edema). These water deposits can also burst open. This leads to weeping skin areas, which then become encrusted again and again.

A common feature of neurodermatitis is that it occurs in phases. For example, your baby may be allergic to cat hair. Every time your baby comes into close contact with a cat, the allergen (in this case the cat hairs) can trigger a relapse.

Therefore, it is important not only to pay attention to the symptoms themselves, but also to determine when the symptoms worsen (for example, contact with a cat) and when the symptoms improve. Neurodermatitis frequently occurs on the face, especially in infancy. But also later, for example in adulthood, eczematous foci can flare up on the face.

The treatment is the same as for neurodermatitis in other parts of the body. While the face and the hairy scalp are often first affected by neurodermatitis in babies, the whole body can be affected in the course of the first months or years of life. Eczema foci can develop on the abdomen, the back, but also on the arms and legs.

Often, however, the bends of the joints are particularly affected, i.e. knee joint, elbow joint and neck. The location of the herd can change again and again as the disease progresses. Especially in infancy, the first symptoms of neurodermatitis often appear in the area of the hairy scalp.

This is where the rash commonly known as milk crust often appears. The weeping eczema foci are scabbed, show a brownish color and therefore resemble burnt milk in a pot. If babies suffer from cradle cap, one can try to clean and treat it carefully with a cloth soaked in oil.

In this way the encrusted parts will slowly come off. A special shampoo should also be used. Neurodermatitis is usually accompanied by severe itching.

It is very tormenting for the children and often sleep-deprived, because it is especially strong at night.Parents of affected children should therefore make sure that the little ones’ fingernails are kept as short as possible. At night, it should be considered to put thin cotton gloves on the affected children to avoid scratching the affected areas. Regular application of gentle creams that moisturize and grease the skin is very important to relieve itching.