Beware of unusual acne in babies

This is an automatically translated article.

The article is professionally consulted by Master, Doctor Nguyen Thi An - Pediatrician - Neonatologist - Department of Pediatrics - Neonatology - Vinmec Ha Long International General Hospital.

1. Acne in babies

Children about a week after birth or new born will appear tiny pimples on the forehead, face, limbs, ... This acne will disappear on its own after a few days and does not affect the health and development of the baby. young. However, there are some types of pathological acne that must be treated and used drugs to cure the child.
Baby acne is also known as millet cyst, milk acne. Usually, up to 20% of babies are born with acne. Baby acne can be caused by hormones the baby gets from his mother, or it can be caused by an enlarged sebaceous gland. This is quite common in babies after birth.

Baby acne spots may be surrounded by an area of ​​slightly red skin. The more red this acne-prone skin area is, the more uncomfortable it will be for the baby, the baby's skin will be irritated, especially when it comes in contact with saliva, breast milk, or detergents...
Normal acne will It disappears within a few weeks of its appearance, or it can take a few months to disappear without leaving any trace on the baby's skin. However, if within 3 months that infant acne still shows no sign of disappearing, parents should take their child to a dermatologist for proper and timely examination and treatment advice.

2. Some types of acne are common in babies

Some cases of acne appear on the skin but not necessarily acne. Some nodules appear as rashes or scabs, which can be a sign of conditions such as buffalo pox (impetigo) or atopic dermatitis (eczema). Accordingly, the cases of acne in infants cannot be subjective:
Atopic dermatitis With 15-20% of babies suffering from this disease. This disease is common in babies from 3-6 months old with signs of red spots like acne, itching, dry skin, even oozing and scabs on the baby's skin.
Besides, parents who clean excessively for babies will make the child's immune system weaken, disappear, creating conditions for skin diseases to develop and attack. Therefore, parents should not take care of children too carefully, it is not the best way to prevent skin diseases for children.
Urticaria The disease manifests as a rash on the skin, acne-like spots like mosquito bites, causing itching. Newborns can develop hives very early on.
Heat rash: The disease appears when the child's body is too hot, heat rash appears on the forehead, neck, closed skin folds of the child. Heat rash is round, red, grows a lot, and is tight on the skin. Keeping cool and airy for the child's body will help the heat rash disappear.

3. Taking care of babies when they have acne

When an infant has acne or the above-mentioned types of acne, parents need to know how to take care and treat it so that the child can get rid of acne as soon as possible and minimize the spread of acne to other body areas. Some ways to take care of babies with acne include:
Do not use acne medications without a doctor's prescription and guidance. Do not scrub too hard, rub or apply force on the acne. This irritates the skin, making acne more severe and contagious. Do not rub lotions containing oils on your child's acne-prone skin. All creams need to be instructed and prescribed by a doctor before use. Do not use saliva to apply on acne-affected skin, or dilute salt water to wash your baby. This is a mistake that most mothers make when having a child with acne and nodules. This will make the skin with acne redder and redder, the baby's skin is irritated, irritated and worse when it comes in contact with water, salt water, breast milk... Should wash the child's face with clean water, soap Specially designed for babies, rinse and dry gently. Take your child to a dermatologist if after a long time the acne still does not show any sign of disappearing. Be patient with the correct treatment prescribed by the doctor for quick results for the child. With the above information, hopefully mothers will know how to best care for and treat babies with acne.
With many years of experience in examining and treating diseases in children, now the Pediatrics Department at Vinmec International General Hospital has become one of the major health care centers, capable of examining , screening and treatment of many specialized diseases in children. Therefore, if the child shows signs of poor absorption of nutrients, slow weight gain, growth retardation, etc., parents can take the child to Vinmec International General Hospital for examination and support. advice from qualified doctors.

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