Best Diaper Rash Product for the NICU

From LoveToKnow Baby

What is the best diaper rash product for the NICU? If you find yourself spending countless hours worrying about your infant in a critical care unit, something as small as a diaper rash may not be high on your list of concerns. However, you also want your little one to be as comfortable as possible in what can often be a stressful situation for him and for you.

What Causes Diaper Rash

Rarely does any baby make it through childhood without experiencing an irritating, and sometimes painful, diaper rash. Some rashes are quite mild and need little treatment, while others are more stubborn, causing pain and even bleeding. While no parent wants to see his or her child suffer through a diaper rash, watching a premature baby or sick infant endure one is even worse. Critical care nurses and parents who have already fought this battle often have strong opinions on the best diaper rash product for the NICU.

Before you begin treating a rash, however, you need to understand what might be causing it. There are several different reasons that babies and children develop these skin irritations, including the following:

Wetness-Prolonged exposure to a wet diaper is one of the most common causes of a diaper rash. The bacteria from urine and feces can quickly buildup on a baby's tender skin, causing a rash that can become more severe if left untreated.
Eczema-Eczema, which is a scaly rash that can occur in the diaper area as well as the legs and other parts of the groin, most likely occurs because of a child's reaction to allergens in the environment. This can include the material of his diapers and the detergent used to wash his clothes.
Yeast infection-A yeast infection is often mistaken for a common diaper rash. However, yeast infections typically occur because an infant is on antibiotics. Thus, a diaper rash that is due to a yeast infection is quite common in the NICU. These rashes are recognizable by their raised bright red appearance.
Perianal dermatitis-This rash generally appears around a child's anus and is caused by a stool that is more alkaline in nature. This typically won't appear, however, until a baby is eating solid foods.

Determining the Best Diaper Rash Product for the NICU

You don't want to spend a lot of time determining the best diaper rash product for the NICU, so which product should you use to treat your baby's diaper rash?

First, keep in mind that there are other steps you can take before you even select a diaper rash ointment.

Because an infant's skin is so delicate, it's better to lay off topical ointments if possible. Sometimes, simply keeping the skin dry and chemical free is all it takes to head off a nasty diaper rash.
Avoid using soaps on baby's skin every day, which could deplete any natural oils from his or her skin.
If possible, let the infant spend periods of time without a diaper.

Finally, if you still need a diaper rash product that will relieve your baby's suffering, there are several on the market. Many of these have been strongly endorsed by parents of babies who have spent time in the NICU. Talk to the pediatric nurses and ask them for advice on the best product to use on your baby's bottom. If they don't have a particular product in stock, ask them if you can try something different on your child to see if that product brings better results. The following is a list of some of the popular diaper rash products:

Boudreaux's Butt Paste-The name speaks for itself, and many parents swear by its success!
Grandma El's Diaper Rash Remedy-It only takes a small amount of this cream to do the trick, and it is great for repelling moisture.
Babecology Diaper Balm-If you want a diaper rash product that is organic in nature, then this cream is for you.
A&D Ointment-This is a great all-purpose ointment that may just do the trick on your infant's diaper rash.
Burt's Bees Baby Bee Diaper Ointment-This ointment is rich with vitamins A and E and is perfect for baby's tender skin.

If you've used another great diaper rash product not on this list, please let our readers know by writing to us in the comments section of this article.

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