How was your kid’s Molluscum treated?

[Anonymous]

We were told by our pediatrician that it would go away on its own. Instead, it spread to my other daughter. I bought those zit stickers/pimple patches and put them on every night to see what would happen. They eventually went away.

[Anonymous]

Still dealing with ours after 10 months. One on the leg popped and another on the back also popped, but there are about 3 left. The dermatologist advised not doing anything but waiting it out, so that’s what I’m doing. I’m careful with no towel sharing or bath/shower with siblings.

[Anonymous]

Cantharone is extract from beetle juice that is a blistering solution used to treat viral conditions like mollusca. It’s hurts so much less than freezing. They dab a tiny amount on each mollusca and it will create a tiny blister so they open and drain. As long as the ozzing is covered it will go away in no time. Your pediatrician can certainly do this.

[Anonymous]

Can you recommend a dermatologist in MoCo who is likely to treat it?

I don’t want to take my kid to a derm who will just tell me to leave it alone. And I’m definitely not interested in waiting months or years for it to resolve on its own.

Ugh.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Cantharone is extract from beetle juice that is a blistering solution used to treat viral conditions like mollusca. It’s hurts so much less than freezing. They dab a tiny amount on each mollusca and it will create a tiny blister so they open and drain. As long as the ozzing is covered it will go away in no time. Your pediatrician can certainly do this.

Nope. Apparently our pediatrician doesn’t treat this. I already called. They just wait for it to resolve.

[Anonymous]

One pediatrician told us to use duct tape and a wart and it actually worked. Would this work for Molluscum too?

[Anonymous]

My DD got a couple around 12 months. She still had them at 4 and then started to get more. We did two rounds of beetle juice and didn’t think it was working. Three weeks later she spiked a fever with no other symptoms and the molluscum disappeared. I think the beetle juice finally kickstarted her immune system.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Can you recommend a dermatologist in MoCo who is likely to treat it?

I don’t want to take my kid to a derm who will just tell me to leave it alone. And I’m definitely not interested in waiting months or years for it to resolve on its own.

Ugh.

Whether or not you find a dermatologist to freeze them or apply beetle juice to them, it will take months or years for it (the viral
Process causing it) to resolve.

After the removal (which can be painful for most kids), those specific spots are gone, but much of the time more just crop up in other places since the virus is still in the body.

A Hopkins Peds derm once told me that she tells parents it’s her job, as a dermatologist, to persuade them to just leave the bumps alone since that will give the lowest risk of any scarring (as opposed to treating them) and that it’s a completely harmless viral rash. She says that many parents refuse to be persuaded, so she will remove them. And some of those kids end up with scarring.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Can you recommend a dermatologist in MoCo who is likely to treat it?

I don’t want to take my kid to a derm who will just tell me to leave it alone. And I’m definitely not interested in waiting months or years for it to resolve on its own.

Ugh.

Not in MoCo but we saw dr Lily in MCLean. It’s one office visit so may be worth the trip.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Can you recommend a dermatologist in MoCo who is likely to treat it?

I don’t want to take my kid to a derm who will just tell me to leave it alone. And I’m definitely not interested in waiting months or years for it to resolve on its own.

Ugh.

Whether or not you find a dermatologist to freeze them or apply beetle juice to them, it will take months or years for it (the viral
Process causing it) to resolve.

After the removal (which can be painful for most kids), those specific spots are gone, but much of the time more just crop up in other places since the virus is still in the body.

A Hopkins Peds derm once told me that she tells parents it’s her job, as a dermatologist, to persuade them to just leave the bumps alone since that will give the lowest risk of any scarring (as opposed to treating them) and that it’s a completely harmless viral rash. She says that many parents refuse to be persuaded, so she will remove them. And some of those kids end up with scarring.

I hear ya—and I’ve read similar statements by pediatric dermatologists online. But interestingly, several posters in this thread seem to indicate the intervention did work (without subsequent outbreaks).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Can you recommend a dermatologist in MoCo who is likely to treat it?

I don’t want to take my kid to a derm who will just tell me to leave it alone. And I’m definitely not interested in waiting months or years for it to resolve on its own.

Ugh.

Whether or not you find a dermatologist to freeze them or apply beetle juice to them, it will take months or years for it (the viral
Process causing it) to resolve.

After the removal (which can be painful for most kids), those specific spots are gone, but much of the time more just crop up in other places since the virus is still in the body.

A Hopkins Peds derm once told me that she tells parents it’s her job, as a dermatologist, to persuade them to just leave the bumps alone since that will give the lowest risk of any scarring (as opposed to treating them) and that it’s a completely harmless viral rash. She says that many parents refuse to be persuaded, so she will remove them. And some of those kids end up with scarring.

I hear ya—and I’ve read similar statements by pediatric dermatologists online. But interestingly, several posters in this thread seem to indicate the intervention did work (without subsequent outbreaks).

For sure you can luck out- if you weren’t going to get any new spots by then anyways , for example. And that happens a bunch. No good way to know that or not. And the scarring risk is still increased with the treatment. Parents feel very icky about molluscum, in my experience, but it’s really one of those very harmless things that’s best left alone.

[Anonymous]

My pediatrician wouldn't treat them so we waited it out w/ my oldest. It took months. Then the following year my 2nd got them and out of desperation I bought a bunch of stuff on amazon. ONe thing was a lemon oil salve type thing. We coated them w/ it every night w/ a qtip and then covered w/ bandaids. They went away in about 2-3 weeks. I asked my dermatologist & she said that could have worked by keeping the core smothered basically and irritating it enough. I was skeptical but then this jan got 2 myself (I think from the shower/towels at the gym). I bought the same stuff from amazon and they went away in about 2 weeks once again.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Can you recommend a dermatologist in MoCo who is likely to treat it?

I don’t want to take my kid to a derm who will just tell me to leave it alone. And I’m definitely not interested in waiting months or years for it to resolve on its own.

Ugh.

Whether or not you find a dermatologist to freeze them or apply beetle juice to them, it will take months or years for it (the viral
Process causing it) to resolve.

After the removal (which can be painful for most kids), those specific spots are gone, but much of the time more just crop up in other places since the virus is still in the body.

A Hopkins Peds derm once told me that she tells parents it’s her job, as a dermatologist, to persuade them to just leave the bumps alone since that will give the lowest risk of any scarring (as opposed to treating them) and that it’s a completely harmless viral rash. She says that many parents refuse to be persuaded, so she will remove them. And some of those kids end up with scarring.

I hear ya—and I’ve read similar statements by pediatric dermatologists online. But interestingly, several posters in this thread seem to indicate the intervention did work (without subsequent outbreaks).

For sure you can luck out- if you weren’t going to get any new spots by then anyways , for example. And that happens a bunch. No good way to know that or not. And the scarring risk is still increased with the treatment. Parents feel very icky about molluscum, in my experience, but it’s really one of those very harmless things that’s best left alone.

What if you have a handful of young kids and you’re worried about it spreading?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My pediatrician wouldn't treat them so we waited it out w/ my oldest. It took months. Then the following year my 2nd got them and out of desperation I bought a bunch of stuff on amazon. ONe thing was a lemon oil salve type thing. We coated them w/ it every night w/ a qtip and then covered w/ bandaids. They went away in about 2-3 weeks. I asked my dermatologist & she said that could have worked by keeping the core smothered basically and irritating it enough. I was skeptical but then this jan got 2 myself (I think from the shower/towels at the gym). I bought the same stuff from amazon and they went away in about 2 weeks once again.

Do you remember what you used?

[Anonymous]

Our dermatologist wouldn’t do anything for my DD who had them on her bottom and the back of her legs for a year from 2.5 - 3.5. They just kept spreading. When she was 3.5 after trying 1000 home remedies I bought an OTC liquid wart remover from CVS - the kind with the wand. I worked in patches and it took a month or two to get them all but I did and it hasn’t come back. It’s been almost a year. The scars are gone now too.

The stuff smelled terrible and stung, but I gave her a pillow with lavender oil to breathe and she got to play with the iPad while I did it. It was not pleasant, but so much better than the molloscum itself, which was driving her crazy.

I’d do it again in a heartbeat.