Hi all! I have a friend who brought her 9 year old daughter to me for a "Princess" facial for her birthday. My friend felt like the facial help with her daughter's persistent perioral dermatitis and wants to continue doing facials for her. I explained that perioral dermatitis is not a condition that I typically treat and that her skin condition is better suited for the advice of a derm but she really wants to continue doing facials. So of course I want to do everything I can to help. I have been researching perioral dermatitis but am not finding much about it other than to take oral antibiotics and avoid topical steroids. Have any of you had a client/s with this type of dermatitis and what did you find worked. Any specific esty safe ingredients that are useful? Any advice or insight would be helpful. Thank you!

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Stephanie

You did not mention what advice you gave her regarding what she is using on her daughter's skin daily. You can really help her in that area since her home regimen to your spa regimen is like a 30:1 imbalance in favor of what she does at home being the culprit. 

But in situations like this, you always have to consider the business side and the clients well being and maybe refer out to a derm.

Marty

SkinCareScience.com

The main thing is to remove the irritant that is causing it.  Have they tried switching toothpaste/floss/mouthwash?  If that has not helped, is there any connection to a specific food or drink that flares her up?  Tracking her diet closely on a calendar and correlating the severity of the perioral dermatitis can be very helpful to finding a culprit.

Next I'd ask, would mom be willing to include an omega-3 containing supplement into her daughter's diet?  Fish oil derived or flax (Barlean's is known to have very high-quality oils) would reduce her inflammation load, as would eating lower on the glycemic index.  Of course if the child has any other medical conditions (especially clotting problems), the pediatrician should be consulted to rule out contraindications (although generally these oils are minimally processed from whole foods and can be considered part of a healthy diet).

Any time I see inflammation (from any cause), I use LED light in the treatment room (red/infrared) which does an amazing job of visibly reducing inflammation after just a few minutes.  If it is available to you, I would definitely use it.  If you see great results, perhaps instead of seeing a 9-year-old for monthly full facials (arguably ineffectual), her mother would consent to bring her weekly or biweekly for short, inexpensive LED sessions just around the mouth area.

Finally, as Marty says, you have a great opportunity to help her topically with her home care routine.  Known topical anti-inflammatory agents include licorice, sea whip, allantoin, chamomile, calendula, many of the peptides, ceramides, zinc, and many more.  Be careful to choose products with "elegant" (short, sweet, to the point) ingredient lists in order to rule out other ingredients that might agitate her skin.  Make absolutely 100% sure that she's using a zinc or titanium dioxide sunscreen and reiterate its importance to mother and daughter each time you treat.

Stephanie,

Look into Trans Epidermal Water Loss and the 'Dry Skin Cycle'.  Google it...

Maybe also look into a product which contains Ceramides at a percentage close to 1% or more. They will cost a little more then normal but I really think you will see a difference.

Marty

SkinCareScience.com

Thank you so very much Marty and Christine for your extremely valuable insight! You were both incredibly helpful!

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