Prophylaxis | Diaper dermatitis

Prophylaxis

There are a few things parents can do when changing their children to make the development of diaper dermatitis less likely. The most important thing is to change the diaper frequently, at least six times a day and preferably as soon as possible after urination or stool excretion. When changing diapers, a pH-neutral soap should be used and rinsed well with clear, warm water.

The washing direction is from front to back and then the wet area is dabbed with a soft towel to avoid friction. Depending on the weather conditions it is also an advantage to let the child air dry without a diaper or to let the child crawl around with its bottom bare, i.e. without a diaper. The use of disposable diapers instead of plastic diapers also has a preventive effect. In addition, it has been shown that diaper dermatitis is less frequent in breastfed children because their stool has a different composition. If the child is bottle-fed, the use of hypoallergenic infant formula (HA food) helps to prevent the development of diaper dermatitis.

Prognosis

Normally napkin dermatitis heals after a few days if the measures described above are taken. Even an additional infection with a bacterium or a fungus can lead to a cure within a few days with the right therapy. However, if a child repeatedly develops the disease, this should be clarified by a doctor.Sometimes there may be another disease behind it, which weakens the child’s immune system and easily causes napkin dermatitis, or you may find certain places in the child’s body where the relevant pathogens have accumulated and from where they repeatedly cause the disease to break out.