Help with Molluscum Lesions on 1 Year Old Daughter

Updated on February 27, 2008
A.C. asks from Ocoee, FL
25 answers

Hi, my 17 month old daughter has been diagnosed with having molluscum lesions on her. She started out with having a few tiny bumbs on her upper lip, those tiny bumbs are now bigger. When I take her to the doctor they told me that there is nothing I can do but let it take it's toll. I also took her to the dermatologist and they gave me a topical solution which I found out cost $220 with insurance. The dermatologist didn't assure me that this lotion would work but my husband and I are desperate to get them off her. She now has another bump on her wrist, her nose and by her chin. We're scared that they will begin to spread since they are contagious. Our son hasn't gotten any and neither have I or my husband. If anyone out there experienced a similar problem with their young children please let me know what you did to resolve this problem. Thanks.

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M.C.

answers from Daytona Beach on

Usually they go away on their own. My daughter had these when she was about 15months old. What they did to my daughter was put her in the papoose restraint thing and "popped" them with a needle.

That was 21 years ago. I've since learned that lemon myrtle essential oil works on them.

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C.H.

answers from Tallahassee on

HI I'm C. a confessed googler. If there is a word I don't know or have never heard of I must google it to learn. This was very informative information and may give you an alternative to the very expensive, no guarantee meds the doc prescribed.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Molluscum

Good luck. I hope that the virus does resolve itself soon as the info I found indicated.

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M.R.

answers from Orlando on

Hi and welcome to the world of mollescum contagiosa, sorry not real cure, like your doctor said they will usually outgrow this ive worked with dermatologist for years and thats a tough one, there is one thing one of our doctors recommend that may help but cant hurt is to apply a thin layer of clear nail polish to each individual one it still may take sometime but speeds it up good luck

1 mom found this helpful
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G.H.

answers from Panama City on

My daughter has molluscums as well. Hers first appeared when she was 3. First of all, they are contagious - but only to your daughter. They are not contagious in the sense that other people can catch them from her; they are contagious in the sense that she can spread them on her own body. Your doctor's advice is correct - there is no magic cream that will make them go away. My daughter had them on her neck. She was old enough for us to teach her not to touch them. Of course she still touched them sometimes... Anyway... the good news is she is now 4.5 yrs old and they are all gone. The doctor told us that kids rarely have them past the age of 7 or 8. Really the best advice is to ignore them. My husband was really fixated on them and on getting rid of them, but I had to convince him that we needed to just let the issue go. They aren't harmful and they run their course eventually. I know it's not fun to see bumps on your daughter, but the only "treatment" is to learn to ignore them.

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L.W.

answers from Orlando on

This virus spread throughout my daughter's swim class, and it was amazing how varied were the various doctors' responses. (For what it's worth, this was some 25 years ago.) Some doctors surgically removed the bumps, which was rather traumatic for child and parent. Ours suggested painting the spots each day with a dab of iodine, a painless and effective treatment that I would probably try again if the occasion arose. On the other hand, I believe some children had no treatment at all, and they recovered completely as well. In all cases the infection ended and did not recur.

Have you checked out Wikipedia? Their article has a number of suggestions. Based on that, I don't think much has changed in 25 years. Except that at that time no one suggested a $220 prescription!

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H.K.

answers from Jacksonville on

Hi! I have an 11 yr old son and an 8 yr old daughter. Both of my children have had molluscum during the past few years. My son's was cleared up using a homeopathic remedy for warts that I purchased at Native Sun. My daughter got molluscum about a year later. The homeopathic remedy didn't work for her, but I remembered that my mother used to give my sister pureed asparagus to clear up her warts when she was young. Thought I would try it! It worked! I bought a can of apsaragus at the grocery store, threw it in the blender, and gave her a tablespoon of that every night. I would suggest you start with the homeopathic remedy first. Maybe try it for 2 weeks to a month to see if you notice any change. If that doesn't seem to work then try the asparagus. Good luck! I know they can look so awful and you feel terrible when they start to show up on their faces! Hope these work for you!

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M.B.

answers from Orlando on

Hi, my 6 year old daughter has just cleared up from Molluscum. We found that tea tree oil works the best. We used it in conjunction with Claritin. The Claritin helped the redness go away. This was after three visits to the dermatologist ($600 later). So I feel your pain and frustration. Don't reuse towels, washclothes, or anything that might touch the area, that helps as well.

Good luck, I wish you the best with this pesky issue!

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L.W.

answers from Orlando on

We had this go through all 4 of my boys. First, wash all your towels in hot water and bleach, because it can be spread through direct contact. We also got the very expensive medicine, which takes it away for a time, but does not get rid of it. My oldest we took to the pediatirician, and he numbed the spots, cleaned it with alcohol, then took a tweezers, and took it off. His were very big.He never got them again. My younger ones got them in tiny spots that I didn't feel anything could help. Finally, when my two youngest, (2, and 3) had had them off and on for a YEAR, I broke down and cleaned them with alcohol, took a sterilzed needle, took the head off and removed the white thing inside with a sterilized tweezers. I learned very fast that it has to look like it is ready to pop for it not to hurt my child. I don't necessarily recommend that you do this yourself, but take her to the ped and insist they do it. It was the only thing that got rod of themfor my boys. they have not had themsince(it's been 2 years)
Hope this helps...

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S.C.

answers from Miami on

I want to hear people's advice on this as well!

S.

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S.D.

answers from Orlando on

Hello A.,
Have you ever heard of Silver Cure. I just pulled up Molluscum and NBC did a story on it. I have never heard of it myself. They did say that there is no cure and you have to let it run it's course until they found Silver Cure. It takes about 3 weeks and it's done.
Good Luck,
Sandi D

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C.J.

answers from Fort Walton Beach on

My daughter has a lot. I had most of them blistered off with beetle juice at the dermatologist. I have the expensive cream that also blisters when used daily for 8 weeks. They are a virus and can spread and be recur. I also found this website: http://www.molluscum.com/?gclid=CNDsnpyI4pECFR_jOAodcjdMkg

This is also expensive but cheaper then the Aldara. Wash her hands a lot. They are spread by itching. Allegedly tape works too - although on the face, I don't see how it would.

The blistering did work quickly - but it did make them red, itchy inflamed looking and then they dried to a scab but are getting better. We just expressed our frustration last night that we are having to deal with this menace. Good luck.

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H.C.

answers from Pensacola on

A.,
I worked for a dermatologist and we saw kids with this all the time. Time is really the only treatment for kids as young as your daughter. This is a virus so it will spread if she scratches at them. You can keep them covered if you want. Sometimes it does take a year for them to resolve. On older kids you can use retin a, aldara or even freeze them with liquid nitrogen. The liquid nitrogen works great but you have to do it several times and its very painful. We didn't usually do this on kids under 4 or 5. Just be patient, thats about all you can do. Sorry I don't have any better advice. Good Luck!!

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S.B.

answers from Orlando on

I feel your pain...my son went through that, but it started under his arm and spread all over his side, stomach and chest. I took him to a dermatologist in Heathrow and was given enough samples of Retin A to take care of it; after a semi-painful tx that did not. Her son had them when he was young and she was so comforting. I will go through my files and try and find her name, she went by "Phil" short for Philamena. You can find info about her office at http://www.advancedderm.com/locations_heathrow.htm
I can't say if she is still there, but if not, maybe they can tell you her whole name and where she went. Best Wishes...it'll take some patience to see this process through with a little one, but I was told that because it can spread so easily to wash the area frequently with an antibacterial soap and to keep it covered, hands off, as best you can. ~Suzanne

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J.S.

answers from Jacksonville on

Hey there, my daughter has this when she was around 2. They were at the top of her thigh so not as noticable I guess. She is now 8 and hasn't had them for a very long time. It won't harm them, but certainly will spread. I don't think it lasted too long, maybe a year at most. I can't recall the cream that was used, ut I do think I remember it working. I know this isn't much info. but hope it helps.

Mom of three: 8, 5, and 14 months with the most supportive man in my life.

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M.E.

answers from Jacksonville on

I am not familiar w/ this diagnosis but I do know something I could not live w/o- charcoal tablets. You can find at any pharmacy store (over the counter or ask the pharmacist) The hospitol uses these when kids come into the ER for an overdose. They absorb poisons in the body.
You can get the powder (or crush the tablets) and use in a bath. It will bring insect bites or stings to a head. Be prepared to have a black tub but will clean up easily.

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K.R.

answers from Panama City on

My son had this as well around his swim trunk waist band and they are definitely annoying. In order to quickly get rid of them you need to remove the "fruiting body" part of the lesion. That is the white part. First there's the red bump, then it turns into a small clear bump then the white "head". The white part is what will make them spread. You can pop them open with a steralized pin or needle and throughly wash it with warm soap and water make sure there is no white left you can dab with a little alcohol. It will heal by the next day and be completely gone in about three or four more days. On the ones that were in a more sensitive area, we put an OTC antifungal cream on every night and that did seem to help speed up the course. Unfortunatly these are the only things we have found to help speed things up. They never did spread to our youngest son but after waiting about 4 months we finally took matters into our own hands with the cream and needle. Hope this helps and good luck!

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M.T.

answers from Pensacola on

Hi,

My son had them on his upper thigh beginning at around age 2...we went through similar process as you have. I wish I could tell you there was a magic trick, but there isn't. They spread a little around his thigh, but no one else in our family got them. Doctors told us it could take a year to go away - nope, they stayed on him for almost 3 years. Then, he got old enough to take care of it himself I suppose because I went into the bathroom while he was taking a bath and he was "doing surgery" on them...He had popped them all and scraped them off...he told me that "his body wanted him to do that"...After that, they never came back and he told me he knew that his body wanted him to get rid of them and I guess it did. But, I know what you are going through, they are gross and you feel helpless. The doctor told us that his body would build up immunities against them and it did. But, it was so strange that he got rid of them himself.
Good luck and I hope they don't last for three years like my little Luke's did,
M.

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B.T.

answers from Orlando on

Hi A.,

My oldest daughter went through this last year. She had them on her nose and around her eyes and on her eyelids. When we took her to the pediatrician we were also told it needed to just run it's course and there was not much that could be done except have the ones that were ready to "pop" removed. It took almost a year for all the spots to go away, but now she's clear.

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C.R.

answers from Fort Walton Beach on

I had the same problem with my daughter when she was younger. Ultimately the dermatologist burned them off, but she was 4 at the time. The rest of them eventually went away on their own but it took close to a year. My son never got any. It was definately not a pleasant route, it was painful and the only reason the doctor did it was because there were sooooo many of them. Good luck, I know how frusterating this is but they will eventually go away on their own.
Carolyn

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P.H.

answers from Tallahassee on

I had these on both of my legs from knee to ankle from a pedicure I got while pregnant. they are so hard to get rid of. I finally got Retin A, which didn't really work, until I put it on during the night, then duct tape only during the day. I read about a duct tape study and it worked in like 80% of people under age 50, but not very well if they were older. It work for me in about 3-4 days! I was so happy, becasue I felt disgusting even though it wasn't my fault. Good luck!

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M.M.

answers from Pensacola on

My 7 yr old son came up with these lesions as well....my doctor told us the same thing....however after several months, of course my son would scratch them and they started to spread on his adomen and side....he was really bothered by them so I started searching for something. I found a solution called Silver Care, it was only about $68.00 to $119.00 and came with a soap, spray for linens, etc., two creams and a silver skin that you use after you squeeze out the middle of the lesion......I didn't realize that you have to do this in order for the lesion to "die"....this is painful, I'm not kidding...my son cried terribly and didn't want me to do it but after we did a few they started going away and he was willing to some extent to let me finish what we started...now only after a month, they are completely gone.
You should be very careful about clothes and linens...they should be washed daily and not worn twice without washing...its very contagious....hopes this helps. The web site is www.molluscum.com...M. M.

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G.J.

answers from Ocala on

Hi A. - I just finished going through this with my 8 year old. We went to our pediatrician and he advised that there are homeopathic things we will find on the internet but that nothing really works except TIME. We tried a few things like the cider vinegar and tea tree oil, but then we decided to just leave it alone. Low and behold... it's gone... it took over 8 or 9 months but there are just a couple of marks still to fade away. The best advice I can give about it being contagious is to possibly keep it covered. My daughter had it on the inside of her thighs and we would put the liquid bandaid on it while they went away. BUT NOT ON OPEN SORES... only on the ones that haven't popped yet. I don't know if this helps you at all. If you would like to contact me directly to talk more, please feel free. You can email me at: ____@____.com or call me at ###-###-#### - Hang in there and God Bless.

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H.J.

answers from Jacksonville on

Hi A.,

I have four children, and 3 of them have had or do have molluscum. I tried using a cream called Aldera. It didn't really work and may cause cancer, so I stopped using it. My oldest daughter had the bumps on the back of her legs. The good news is that they have completely dissapeared. The bad news is that it took 8 months. My son and youngest daughter also ended up getting them. My son's have recently dissapeared taking about 6 months. My youngest daughter has had the worst of it. It has spread easily on her. The ones on her face have finally disappeared....BE PATIENT with the ones on the face they WILL go away after time. The ones she had on her belly, I have treated with liquid wart remover. This stuff works the best. My son had sensitive skin so he could not use it. It is best not to use it on the face. Put a bandaid on after it is applied.
They will go away eventually, although when it first started I thought it would never end. Just keep your head up..there is a light at the end of the tunnel.
H.

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C.H.

answers from Tallahassee on

A., I am not sure if you have gotten a response yet, but I went through this with my daughter a couple of years ago. I too, was told there was nothing that could be done about it. It would go away over time. After a few months, I took her to a dermatologist and they used an ointment on hers and they went away. That said, it was a little painful for her. The ointment caused a sore all it's own, sort of like a burn. Though it was uncomfortable the first couple of days, I am glad we did it. The bumps are all gone and haven't returned. Good luck!

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