What is the best thing for a kid with chicken pox to keep her from itching and scarring?

Answer 1

Head for the kitchen cabinet ... then the bath. "The best home remedy to relieve the itching from chickenpox is to mix 1 cup of white kitchen vinegar, 1/2 cup of baking soda and one to two capfuls of Alpha Keri body oil in a bath," says Marian H. Putnam, M.D., a pediatrician in Boston and clinical instructor of pediatrics at Boston University School of Medicine. "After a good soak of 15 to 20 minutes, leave the bathtub and then apply Dyprotex cream, an over-the-counter product that is sold as pads or in lotion form. This relieves itching better than some of the other anti-itch formulas, and since it doesn't crust like those other drying agents, there's less chance of scarring."

You can also soak a washcloth in the bath and just apply it to the face to soothe the itching, according to Dr. Putnam.

File nails daily. "Kids will tear themselves up trying to scratch themselves, so I recommend you get a few emery boards and file their nails down, literally on a daily basis," says Dr. Sterne. "Most people simply cut the nails, but doing that doesn't give you as smooth an edge."

Wash 'em, too. "It's a good idea to scrub a child's nails with soap and water or even a gentle brush once or twice a day in order to prevent secondary infection," says Edgar O. Ledbetter, M.D., former chairman of the Department of Pediatrics at Texas Tech University in Lubbock.

Nix the itch with oatmeal baths. Doctors recommend colloidal baths using preparations such as colloidal oatmeal to treat itchy skin. "I recommend twice-daily colloidal baths for patients with chickenpox, because colloidal oatmeal is nonirritating and soothing and has a slight anti-inflammatory effect," says Lawrence Charles Parish, M.D., a Philadelphia dermatologist. (Colloidal oatmeal, such as Aveeno, can be purchased in any drugstore. It is simply raw oatmeal that's been ground to a fine powder.)

Keep cool. English researchers speculated in the British Medical Journal that keeping patients cooler than usual might result in milder cases with fewer pockmarks. This is still in the theory stage, but Dr. Sterne has a possible explanation: "When people are warmer, they do tend to itch more, and the rushes are more prominent," he says. (And you'll note that more pockmarks appear on "warm" areas of the body, such as the armpits and groin.)

Forget steroid creams. Probably the biggest and most dangerous mistake people make in treating chickenpox is reaching for relief with an over-the-counter anti-itch cream. "Never put on a steroid cream like Cortaid, because using it may cause an additional bacterial infection," according to Henry M. Feder, Jr., M.D., professor of family medicine and pediatrics at the University of Connecticut Health Center in Farmington. "Besides that, it can make the pox a lot worse."

Try to limit exposure. While it's practically guaranteed that an infected family member will pass chickenpox to others who haven't previously been exposed, limiting contact with the "contagious" child can make for a milder case. "There's a trend that the more time you spend around the person who initially has it, the longer and worse your case will be," says Dr. Feder.

Some other random remedies

Keep Sores clean, apply neosporin or some sport of antibacterial topical lotion

Honey smeared over the skin will help in healing the disease

Apply Sandalwood oil ( not the paste ) from the first day of appearance of rash till the fall of scabs. helps

Apply Vitamin E oil over the skin. Will help the healing process..

A bath of oatmeal is a natural remedy to relieve the itch due to chicken pox

Lukewarm water baths with neem leaves will help relieve the itching.

Apply Calamin Lotion for itching.

And if scarring does occur there are a variety of lotions and very the counter topicals to help minimize the appearance of scars

Answer 2

The only thing that I can tell you that really worked on my daughter was lots of warm baths and lots and lots of Calamine or Caladryl is even better because it has Benadryl in it.
Just try to make her as comfortable as much as possible so that she will not want to scratch them. That is what makes them spread.

If you can entertain her with something she enjoys I noticed with my daughter that it took her mind off of the itchiness a bit. Like putting puzzles together, playing games or just watching a movie together.

Answer 3

I don't know how old the child is, but when my kids had the chickenpox (both at the same time) I put socks on their hands....they could still "rub" the itch, but not as abrasively as they would with their fingernails. They thought that running around with socks on their hands was kind of "fun" too.

Another poster mentioned benadryl, which is very effective. Calamine lotion really works too.

Answer 4

There are great over the counter products like an Oatmeal Bath and body lotions. Also, make sure the kids nails are well trimmed. Good luck.

Answer 5

In the past, we used calamine lotion. This remedy has been replaced by Polysporin. It prevents scarring, and helps healing. Also, an oatmeal bath works really well. My mother used to get us (including my Dad) to wear mittens, so we couldn't scratch. It did work!

Answer 6

Calamine lotion was used since I was a child and I used it on my children. It seemed to help. If the kid is too young to keep ifrom scratching the lesions try putting on soft mittens to prevent scarring.

Answer 7

warm vinegar baths help aton.it stinks but your baby will love you for it.pour the whole bottle into a tub of water and just soak.

Answer 8

Use some Benadryl cream.

Answer 9

oatmeal baths work well