My 4 year old daughter has had molluscum since August th...

Thankfully - the Thuja seems to have helped with my daughter's MC. She had the first outbreak in May 2006 and the final outbreak have faded well and are gradually disappearing. The difference is is that no new molluscum have appeared. of course, this could just be the natural cycle of the infection and my daughter may have built up a natural immunity? Did boosting her immunity with the eccinacea / multi-vits help? whatever, I am going to contunue with the Thuja to the end of the course that was prescribed. How long did each mc take to go? Well, in my daughter's case (and the cases described on this site seem to vary), each 'lump' had about a 6-8 week 'lifecyle' - from small red spot to pustular lump, which would then burst / bleed / weep - then scab over and disappear. i admit to squeezing a couple of them once I'd read that this was ok to do so. i do think that my daughter found this painful, and I only attempted to do this after she'd had a bath, and when the mc was 'full and fit to burst'. the individual mc's with my daughter never got extremely large - probably up to 4mm diameter max - but were quite raised (maybe 5mm) from the skin at the point before they burst. The Thuja cream was particularly helpful as my daughter tends towards the excemic (perhaps a contributory factor to her contracting this condition?). Hope that this helps and good luck. Just to say - and as you can probably imagine - it is such a relief when the condition begins to resolve. I'm sure that your daughter's condition will improve.

[i:44369b10bb]This message was automatically imported from the original Patient Experience[/i:44369b10bb]

Hi, I'm a healthy 27 year old female currently living with molluscum. I went without diagnosis for 3 years. At that point it had spread to cover my face, neck, arms, back, and legs. I am now faced with tedius time consuming treatment which could of greatly been reduced with earlier detection and knowledge of the nature of molluscum. I hope to help others "nip it in the bud" so to speak and to encourage people to do something about your or your childs molluscum before it grows out of control like mine has. My advice ofcourse shouldn't replace your physicians, but I have learned some things in my bout with this absolutely annoying disease! It should help.

Early detection and diagnosis is key to controling molluscum.

After diagnosis it is important to isolate and remove!all molluscum bumps to prevent further spreading and scarring. There are 2 different ways to do this at home depending on type and size (depth) of molluscum and area and type of skin. Both ways are quick and inexpensive.

Regarding patches of tiny new pustules or small slightly raised red bumps on inconspicuous areas, clean with salicylic acid wash or astingent, cover with benzoyl peroxide and cover with clothing. Do this 1 to 2 times daily and they should disappear or dry ,crust and fall off when dead. Though effective this process is extremely drying (using these 2 products together)so it is not recommend for entire face, yet using products seperately can work well for some facial and neck skin. Remember benzoyl peroxide bleaches clothing.

Regarding larger deeper bumps. Do NOT leave them to burst on their own for the bacteria inside will spread to surrounding skin. Do NOT leave the waxy core inside the molluscum bump to dry out and harden, the skin around it will heal and when the dried papule is squeazed out it will leave a crater. Do NOT allow the bump to white head and then receed back into the skin, it will stay deep underneath the skin and leave a dimple. The best way to remove a deep moluscum bump (this being the cheapest and least scarring) is as follows:

First night

1)carefully aggravate/prepare molluscum bump or bumps(this is done to promote an immune response which begins the rejecting of the molluscum by the body, in other words it begins to white head. Circling with a toothpick, applying hot damp cloth, or applying benzoyl peroxide and covering with impermeable tape are some ways to draw molluscum to surface skin)

Next night (or when bump is completed white heading process)

1)wash hands and affected area

2)using fingers or 2 swabs pop molluscum bump (it is very important to continue squeezing out the inner waxy core of the bump until it bleeds! Making sure not to leave any white core! doing so might leave area infected, sore and take longer to heal.)

3)Dispose of core properly to prevent recontamination

4)wash hands thoroughly

5)with new swab, clean sore with hydrogen peroxide until white (kills bacteria)

6)with new swab, clean surrounding area and then sore with alcohol, dry with other end of swab holding with pressure on sore for a while to stop oozing(cleans and prepares skin for bandaid)

7)with toothpick, dab sore with small dot of benzoyl peroxide (will kill any left over bacteria)

8) cover with impermeable tape (latex free sheer bandaids cut to size work well, doubling up to make sure nothing oozes out from bandaid holes)

3rd night remove bandaid, clean with alcohol, apply neosporin and cover again (neosporin promotes healing, keeps sticky bandaid off sore and bandaid makes skin heal flat)

4th night remove bandaid, clean, apply neosprin and allow to aerate. Continue with neosporin daily to advance healing and minimize scarring. Scarring is minimal with popping molluscum if you do it carefully and at the appropiate time. Area will heal flat and remain pink for a couple of weeks. Scarring is considerably less with popping molluscum bumps than using a curette beca

Your advice certainly makes alot of sense to me and I am so sorry you are going through this.

I am getting panicky about my 4 year old as she is getting more tiny spots dotted all over the place.

Where did you get the salicylic acid wash and benzoyl peroxide from? Did you just go to the chemist? And how did you find out about these treatments? I have been on every website you can think of to research this and wondered how you found out about this? Just wonder if this treatment may be too drying for a child. We have tried homeopathic thuja which doesn't seem to have worked and are now using tea tree oil but this seems to be really drying the skin but with little effect other than making one of the bigger spots bleed, which concerns me. It seems to be bleeding from underneath where the spots meets the skin.

Thanks

Lou

[i:536382c2ad]This message was automatically imported from the original Patient Experience[/i:536382c2ad]

Not sure if this info has already been posted as I have had problems with web, apologies if this is the 2nd posting of similar content.

I have been posting regularly since my 4 year old daughter was diagnosed with MC back in August 2006. I must admit to being traumatised by it due to a] not knowing how bad the spots would get and b] the risk of passing the virus onto her sister and friends. In the last month or so I have tried to become abit more relaxed about it as it was taking over my life, however we are extremely vigilant, using separate towels, lots of hand washing and covering the spots with clothes. I would really hate to think of us being the cause of someone else having to go through this awful virus.

We have been using 2 treatments, thuja and tea tree oil. The thuja since November and although the homeopathic pharmacist advised me a couple of weeks ago that if it hadn't already shown results it may not as there is only a 70% success rate he did suggest continuing for now as we would never know if we had continued abit longer if it may have worked. She is taking 30c tablets twice daily and we are putting the tea tree oil on twice daily also.

I am pleased to say in the last week we are really noticing changes in the spots. She has them in various places, behind her knees, on her tummy, one under her arm, one on her neck and some on her tummy, totalling about 20 spots not terribly severe at this stage. They are getting white heads on them, starting to dry up and scab and the 2 biggest ones which she has had for the full 6 months seem to be shrinking also. We are noticing that the newest ones are scabbing over very quickly.

We are just wondering if anyone has had the following experience:

Around each spot there seems to be abit of a rash, not eczema, and some of the spots, especially the ones behind her knees are looking quite inflamed. We are wondering if this could mean the spots are on their way out as we had read that they can appear worse when they are starting to go. Also, we are noticing quite a large number of tiny bumps on different areas of her skin, particularly on her arms but I don't think they look like MC, they are more like a rash and under the skin. We wonder whether this could be the virus coming out as the immune system starts to fight it and they will disappear back into the body.

If anyone has experienced either of these situations we would be grateful for any info, especially as some of the spots are starting to itch her abit and we wonder if this is a sign of healing. I am using sudocrem on the ones that itch which seems to help abit.

This site is brilliant and has been a great source of comfort and info to me. I check this site each day for any new info.

Many thanks

Lou

[i:1b92e9cdb5]This message was automatically imported from the original Patient Experience[/i:1b92e9cdb5]

Hi Lou

I'm glad to hear that things seem to be getting a bit better for your little one now.

My daughter's molluscum were very itchy and our general pharmacist advised us to put some bicarbonate of soda into her bath water. This seems to take the heat and itch out of the spots somehow(I remembered we did that when she had chicken pox too).

Maybe that might help a bit too.

Cath

[i:4cf9ccddd9]This message was automatically imported from the original Patient Experience[/i:4cf9ccddd9]

Hi Lou -

It seems we are going through the exact thing right now with our son. We are using Thuja ointment in the morning and night, tea tree oil at noon and in the bath. I also cover some with medical tape. I started the ointment 4 weeks ago. We suddenly got a lot more spots but that has stopped. Many have scabbed up like you said and some (seems like the big ones) have a rash (redness) around them. This really comes out after bath. I have not been concerned about the redness. I am confident that the virus is on its way out since the other spots have disappeared. I'm just waiting for the big "Mother" one that's been on his leg the whole time to go.

There are also some small bumps on the back of his arm that have no color. These are very common in kids. I had them and have seen them a lot. I'm not sure what causes it but I don't think it's the virus. That's my guess. It may be the same thing you are seeing on your daughter.

It is also a big concern of mine that other children do not get the virus from my son. Like you, I keep it all covered with clothes.

I hope it all goes well for you. I can reply again with an update on our end.

Suzanne

[i:93e7a877b0]This message was automatically imported from the original Patient Experience[/i:93e7a877b0]

Hi Suzanne

Thanks for that. It certainly does sound very similar. We too have used tape and it does seem since using it that suddenly the spots are changing. Not sure if this is coincidence. My daughter has had a few new spots in the last few weeks and these 2 have suddenly started scabbing over which seems very promising.

We are trying not to get too excited but are just praying they are gone soon!

Would be interested to know how long your son has had the spots. My daughter is 4 and has had them for nearly 7 months. You sound very like me in the fact that you don't want to risk passing them onto others. That has been the worst part for me, worrying about it. I am convinced my daughter got them from her cousin playing in the paddling pool last June. She had it quite severeley and at the time we didnt even know what the spots were as they didnt tell us and they certainly didnt say they were contagious. I think this was really unfair but their attitude was well if theyre going to get it they will! Now the sister of the cousin has MC too due to bath sharing I imagine. They don't seem bothered by it but why put children/ parents through this horrible virus if it can be avoided.

Lou

[i:d9ae7aeb89]This message was automatically imported from the original Patient Experience[/i:d9ae7aeb89]

Hi Lou,

I wish you every success with Thuja - I have tried that on my daughter and unfortunately had to stop as it was causing a side efect of drying out her skin with what looked like exczema patches appearing - she was originally on 2 a day which we reduced to 1 a day on advice from the homeopath - to no avail. Calendula cream helped with the dryness considerably. However - it still continued so I have stopped thuja for a while. I dont want you to be disheartened though as I have read so many positive comments about thuja. I have started to 'burst' some of the spots when she has had a bath and they are obviously ripe for bursting. Once I have done this and they bleed slightly (very slightly) I put tea tree oil on and cover them in a plaster for a couple of days. The ones that have been burst do appear to be disappearing - without leaving scars. Like you I have been having nightmares about contagion amongst friends - so I have been up front and told them, but keep my daughter covered and if she swims she wears a full swimsuit not a standard one, she does not share towels and she does not share fancy dress clothes. Lucky they are all very supportive . Even though this is supposed to be so common - I have not actually met anyone with it!!!

Good luck with the thuja - I really hope it works, but please try not to be disheartened if it doesnt.

Hi all

Have just been reading your messages and I am a bit confused about the thuja - I bought some 30c tablets, but on the label it says that they should be taken for 5 days or until symptoms improve. I stopped after 5 days as I was scared to take more than recommended on the label, but I still have molloscum so wanted to start taking them again.

Do you think it would be ok to take the thuja for more than 5 days at a time? It seems like you guys have been giving them to your children for longer periods than this? How many times a day have you been giving the thuja to your children aswell if you are giving for periods longer than 5 days? Would be really helpful to know to help me decide how many a day I should be taking.

Thank you very much. I'd really appreciate any info

My daughter got MC at 3, just after taking up swimming. it took a couple of months for diagnosis and to be told that there was no cure. I looked up the internet at the time and got advice to pop them (5yrs ago). After being there for about three months, they died immediately once popped getting the white core out.

5yrs on, my son aged 5, has now MC, just after taking up swimming (both my kids have ezcema so are more at risk). This time the spots are tiny, only about 1mm. He has approx 15 spots under his arm and has them for about 4 weeks now. I managed after his bath to squeeze them all and they are dying. There are two new tiny pin prick marks, I cannot tell if it is MC as they are barely visible. i wil continue to pop and hope his immune system kicks in soon as we are going on holidays in june.

[quote:c6794d09d2=\"P.\"]Hi, I'm a healthy 27 year old female currently living with molluscum. I went without diagnosis for 3 years. At that point it had spread to cover my face, neck, arms, back, and legs. I am now faced with tedius time consuming treatment which could of greatly been reduced with earlier detection and knowledge of the nature of molluscum. I hope to help others \"nip it in the bud\" so to speak and to encourage people to do something about your or your childs molluscum before it grows out of control like mine has. My advice ofcourse shouldn't replace your physicians, but I have learned some things in my bout with this absolutely annoying disease! It should help.

Early detection and diagnosis is key to controling molluscum.

After diagnosis it is important to isolate and remove!all molluscum bumps to prevent further spreading and scarring. There are 2 different ways to do this at home depending on type and size (depth) of molluscum and area and type of skin. Both ways are quick and inexpensive.

Regarding patches of tiny new pustules or small slightly raised red bumps on inconspicuous areas, clean with salicylic acid wash or astingent, cover with benzoyl peroxide and cover with clothing. Do this 1 to 2 times daily and they should disappear or dry ,crust and fall off when dead. Though effective this process is extremely drying (using these 2 products together)so it is not recommend for entire face, yet using products seperately can work well for some facial and neck skin. Remember benzoyl peroxide bleaches clothing.

Regarding larger deeper bumps. Do NOT leave them to burst on their own for the bacteria inside will spread to surrounding skin. Do NOT leave the waxy core inside the molluscum bump to dry out and harden, the skin around it will heal and when the dried papule is squeazed out it will leave a crater. Do NOT allow the bump to white head and then receed back into the skin, it will stay deep underneath the skin and leave a dimple. The best way to remove a deep moluscum bump (this being the cheapest and least scarring) is as follows:

First night

1)carefully aggravate/prepare molluscum bump or bumps(this is done to promote an immune response which begins the rejecting of the molluscum by the body, in other words it begins to white head. Circling with a toothpick, applying hot damp cloth, or applying benzoyl peroxide and covering with impermeable tape are some ways to draw molluscum to surface skin)

Next night (or when bump is completed white heading process)

1)wash hands and affected area

2)using fingers or 2 swabs pop molluscum bump (it is very important to continue squeezing out the inner waxy core of the bump until it bleeds! Making sure not to leave any white core! doing so might leave area infected, sore and take longer to heal.)

3)Dispose of core properly to prevent recontamination

4)wash hands thoroughly

5)with new swab, clean sore with hydrogen peroxide until white (kills bacteria)

6)with new swab, clean surrounding area and then sore with alcohol, dry with other end of swab holding with pressure on sore for a while to stop oozing(cleans and prepares skin for bandaid)

7)with toothpick, dab sore with small dot of benzoyl peroxide (will kill any left over bacteria)

8) cover with impermeable tape (latex free sheer bandaids cut to size work well, doubling up to make sure nothing oozes out from bandaid holes)

3rd night remove bandaid, clean with alcohol, apply neosporin and cover again (neosporin promotes healing, keeps sticky bandaid off sore and bandaid makes skin heal flat)

4th night remove bandaid, clean, apply neosprin and allow to aerate. Continue with neosporin daily to advance healing and minimize scarring. Scarring is minimal with popping molluscum if you do it carefully and at the appropiate time. Area will heal flat and remain pink for a couple of weeks. Scarring is considerably less with po

I tried the duct tape method which was in the New York Times in 2002. I discovered this article on the internet.

Apply duct tape to the MC, leave on for six days. Do not remove before that. After the six days my sons MC were all dead but one. I squeezed this one and retaped it. We are now MC free.

Hi everyone.

I too have children suffering from mc and like most mothers or fathers are worried about it. My daughter (5) was the first one to get them and now they seem to be going but it has been a couple of years. My son (4) has got them now but mainly in his groin area.

We took him to the doctors for something else to do with his penis, the doctor noted that he had a mc on the end of his penis and said that he was reluctant to treat the soreness in my son's penis because of that being there because certain creams can make them react badly and get bigger or more appear.

The thing I am concerned about now is that the mc on the end of his penis is growing quite large and started to go a funny sort of black colour. Doctors said just to leave it but it is starting to look unsightly.

Has anyone else had this happen to any of their mc's and if so please let me know what type of treatment was used. I would squeeze it but because of where it is there is no way my son will let me get near it.

Help anyone

I would love people to come back on here with their invaluable advice....Lou what happened with your daughters.....my poor 8yr old has it all around her nostrils and they are huge and 12 under her eye and 6 on her chin....its horrible....children are so cruel to her....

Megsmumxxx

The first Doctor that noticed these on my oldest son told us right away what they were. She said pop them right after a warm bath and they will go away quicker, or you can wait it out..He only had 10 or so. I didn't do each one all at once, but as i got the ball of kind of hard white stuff out with each one, they went away.. Just like that they were gone and you couldn't even tell..Then my oldest daughter got them..She had quite a few more on her..She was a little harder to work with about popping them. But with each one i managed to talk her into \"helping it go away\" and popping, the same thing happened. Went away like that, and no signs they were ever there...My second daughter has been harder to deal with..She has continued to get them ALL OVER her body..She is harder to work with about popping them too! So the mc has been a burden on her, plus continues to spread...But..with each one i pop, they go away from that area..If i could get them all at one time, she would be rid of them faster..You have got to make sure that you get all the stuff out until the site bleeds..And it will bleed a lot...But comfort the child, and let them know it will all be over in a matter of seconds...