Babies - Skin Troubles : Part 2

The Mother and Her Child
by William S. Sadler, M.D., Lena K. Sadler, M.D.

(Page 33 of 41)

Boils

The much plastering of boils has done an untold amount of mischief. Many children and adults are in their graves today because of improper treatment of boils. Blood poisoning which so often follows the careless plastering, as well as the uncleanly opening of boils, can all be avoided. Before touching a boil, the surrounding skin should be thoroughly washed with sterile cotton and laundry soap and then disinfected with alcohol. Then, with a scalpel or a surgeon's knife which has been either boiled for twenty minutes or allowed to remain in pure carbolic acid two minutes and then in alcohol two minutes, it should be thoroughly opened down to the core so that the pus may come out. It is very much better for the trained hands of a physician to do this than for any member of the family to undertake such an operation - where the danger of blood poisoning is always present. The only treatment of skin eruptions containing pus which is justifiable for the home folks to undertake is to simply paint them with iodine. Under no circumstance should poultices be used.

Fever Blisters

It is not at all uncommon for small children to develop a group of fever blisters on the lips when suffering with any disease, or experiencing a high fever. Even a simple cold or a spell of indigestion may be accompanied by fever blisters. They appear not only on the lips but also on the edges of the nose and may even be seen on the chin.

Early in their first appearance they may be treated with spirits of camphor or plain alcohol, which sometimes tends to abort them; but they usually run their course, and when they are fully developed they may be treated with zinc oxide, simple borated Vaseline.

Warts

Very often children's hands are disfigured by warts. They appear suddenly, develop rapidly, and many times disappear just about as suddenly as they appeared. Every child suffering from warts usually passes through the stage of charms and lingoes which are popularly used to remove these disagreeable growths. We hardly see any efficacy in "bean-ie, bean-ie take this wart away," or any particular virtue in stealing mother's dishcloth, cutting it up into as many pieces as there are warts on the hand and rubbing each wart with a separate piece of the cloth; but you will find people in every town or village who will assure you that their warts were driven away by one of these charms or lingoes. Warts are either better left alone or removed by a physician with the high-frequency spark or some other reliable method.

Birthmarks

A red or purplish patch on the skin is the result, as mentioned in an earlier chapter, of an embryological accident in which one or more embryonic cells slipped out of place in the early days of skin formation. These accidental markings may occur on the face, the scalp, or on any other portion of the body, and they should be let alone, unless they show a tendency to grow, when it may prove best to give them proper surgical attention.

A mole is also a birthmark, and if found upon the neck or shoulders where it is likely to disfigure, it may be removed by the high-frequency spark, or by surgery, in the same way as warts. Never tamper with moles. Leave them alone or turn them over to the surgeon.

Erysipelas

Erysipelas is a much-dreaded disease which is the result of infection with the blood-poisoning germ - streptococcus. It usually occurs about a wound, and is due to infection by this microbe. If it follows circumcision, it is due, of course, to infection, and may be very serious, even causing death. It attacks people of any age and is oftenest seen on the face. In appearance, the skin is a bright and shiny red, with a definite line of demarcation slightly raised at the edges because of the swollen tissues underneath. On pressure, the redness disappears but reappears immediately upon relieving the pressure. The inflammation, pain, and fever often continues a number of days, during which the child should be isolated from all other members of the family.

The bowels should be freely opened, and the diet should be liquid and soft; while local treatment is cared for by the physician who should always be called. Should erysipelas develop on a very young baby it is very important that he should be removed at once from the mother. As stated before, the disease is produced by the blood-poisoning germ which is very much to be avoided in any and all stages of obstetrics. One attack in no way renders the patients immune. They may have repeated attacks of erysipelas. The treatments should be started early and kept up most rigidly.

Scabies and Lice

In thickly settled districts among the poor and uneducated, where filth and untidiness reign, the "itch" is a very prominent disease. It is caused by the itch mite, a parasite which burrows underneath the skin leaving behind its eggs in little irregularly shaped, bluish tinted ridges. Such a profound itching is set up by this burrowing and depositing of eggs that the child cannot resist scratching, and all taken together produces the typical itch-rash. The common site for this rash is on the sides and between the fingers and toes; on arm pits and buttocks of the child, as well as at the waistline. The treatment is usually beyond home remedies. A physician should have charge of the case who will conduct a line of treatment which, if diligently followed, will rid the body of this scourge within a week or ten days.

Along with the itch are often found parasites of the head, or lice. It is not at all infrequent to find them in the heads of uncared for children; but if a much-cared-for child is brought in contact with an infected head he will probably "catch" the infection. A most intense and disagreeable itching is set up at once. The treatment consists in getting the head clean by the use of a very fine comb, therefore endeavoring to remove the adult parasites as well as the eggs or "nits." However, great care should be taken to avoid injuring the scalp. Perhaps the simplest and most effective treatment known is the kerosene bath which should be applied at night, the hair being done up in a bandage until morning, when the kerosene is washed off with soap and water and then the hair given a vigorous vinegar shampoo in order to destroy the "nits." Tincture of larkspur, or an ointment made from the seeds, may also be used. It is applied several days in succession and then washed out.

About the Author

Dr. William S. Sadler M.D. was a well-known American psychiatrist and college teacher in the school of medicine at the University of Chicago. For over sixty years he practiced his profession in Chicago, thirty-three years being associated in practice with his wife, Dr Lena Kellogg Sadler. The doctors were pioneers in the research on the mysterious Urantia Papers.