The dermatologist said we would try different creams,and this was the first one we tried. I guess the cream removes all the dead skin that causes the red bumps. and its not that rough though . im pretty sure its perscription.
the whole process is really expensive though($100). the appointment costs $30 and i forget how much the cream was but i think it was like $40-$70 .
its expensive but my kp is gone and its sooooo worth it!!!

Wonderwoman, how long did you use the 40% urea cream? How long did it take for you to see improvement? Also, where do you have KP - arms, legs, face???

I have kp all over. severe kp . i used the cream and i saw a difference in about a week,
the bumps went away in about another 2-3 weeks . i kept warm so it couldnt really come back
(i live in new england and it gets pretty damn cold up here!!!) well i hope my info helped.

stephanie

p.s if you try this dont freak out if it takes a little longer than 2 or 3 weeks.(it probably varies person to person)

Would you say your KP is gone now? Mine is really bumpy...I have an appointment with the Derm...last time I went I tried some cream that didn't work at all he said next time we'd try Retin-A...I'm going to ask about the 40% Urea...my KP is out of control right now - the reddness doesn't even bother me...it's the damn bumps & now for some reason it's worse and they look more and more like pimples...it's pretty depressing to dread the summer when everyone else is so excited for it - the thought of bearing my skin right now is making my stomach turn!!!

I noticed that the parts of my skin that have it are parts that I don't sweat a lot. I don't sweat a lot in general, but when I do, its always the parts where I have no KP... I don't remember ever sweating significantly in the parts with KP. And I notice that after I work out and I'm wearing sweatpants or something, my skin is a lot smoother because of the sweat maybe?

I always thought that the reason KP was minimal right after waking up was because 1) Your body is calm and 2) I always wear sleeveless shirts to sleep and maybe it's the friction of the bedsheets and my skin that exfoliates them...?

I have really low blood pressure and allergies...

I found that Eucerin helps my cheeks in its texture and color, and my arms if I use it for a few days in a row and also gently exfoliate in the shower. Other moisturizers, such as Lubriderm (for extra dry skin) help with the texture sometimes, but not with the redness. And exfoliating too hard only worsens the KP.

I read somewhere that KP is autosomal dominant. Meaning if one parent has it it will definitely be passed down to all their offspring. The only thing that makes the diff is the actual expression of the genetic defect. For some reason, some carriers of the KP defect dont show any KP on their skin, some minimal, some moderate, some a lot. But they all definetly do carry the KP gene.

yes , its pretty much gone.

i tried the urea cream for about a week.. nada.. nothing.. i'm not sure if it's worth $70 for a tube.. my insurance won't cover it.. my skin is softer now that i'm trying some of the other things mentioned at this site, but nothing is clearing up my bumps..

Well I my mother and no one else on that side of the family has it. So Im assuming my father had it, but was adopted so Im just guessing. My children have it at varying degrees. my oldest the worst since pretty much birth, looking like he had pimples all over. I do not think sun lack of sun has anything to do with it since I only have it on my upper arms which get the most sun on my body as I drive a convertible. Butthe sun does make it appear better, so does swimming in a chlorinated pool, but then both have an anti-bacterial effect.

did your dermatologist tell you or did you find out from here

oh my god im exactly like that!!!!!

I've seen a few medical questions in here. I'm a med student, though I don't presume to have any special knowledge of KP except that I've had it for as long as I can remember.

First, what is KP? Its a disorder in which your skin seems to either produce more keratin (the stuff that makes your skin, hair and nails tough) than normal, or the keratin doesn't shed off as quickly as normal. This produces the hard bumps. They turn red due to inflammation. You'll also notice that the hairs on the affected area are short and wispy, as the keratin plugs around the follicles are basically choking the hairs as they grow out. It seems to affect the upper arms, legs, face, and buttocks predominantly. The reason for this is unknown. There are also a few different types of KP, some including other symptoms such as loss of eyebrows etc.


Second, what causes KP? Its an autosomal dominant trait - translation, if one parent has the gene (though not necessarily showing KP) you have at least a 50% chance of also having it. The problem many people have noticed is that it seems to skip some people in a family. This is called limited penetrance, where not everyone with the gene shows the disorder. Why? No one really knows. Could be other genes at play which we're not aware of, could be environment, diet, etc.

Third, what to do for KP? Again, who knows. Different people have different experiences. The results from lotions and diet changes seem to be all over the place. Most general docs don't know much about it since its not seen as a 'medically' harmful disorder. In my own education, it was mentioned in one breath and left behind. Most suggestions seem to be to avoid drying the skin, and to use moisterizing lotions esp. those with urea or lactic acid to help break down the tough keratin.

Someone else mentioned the skin being its best when waking up in the morning. I think thats just from the friction of clothing or sheets against the skin at night.Right now I'm trying to see what I can accomplish with use of a pumice sponge and OTC urea lotion. Hopefully that will put a dent in it.

pollicis, I enjoyed your overview. You mentioned you used an over the counter Urea lotion. Which one have you tried and favor at the moment?

my kp is just about cleared up . i used 40% urea . do you think that would make a differance ?

I used the keralak (?) lotion prescribed by the derm. I want't oo impressed with the derm though- gave me no info and said the name so fast I'm not even sure what she said. thank goodness I was able to diagnose myself. as for the vitamin part.. maybe that's true, but I have been on supplements for years. all of the oils and vitamin A in a multi form. I've gone ahead and added beta carotene just to see. I've tried several of the remedies on this message board but I plateau very quickly. I'm trying the pumice stone and BBW lotion. My arms are defintely softer, but the redness is there and there are still lumps. I tried selson blue on the arms as well just because of the possible mite connection. They look better, but no where near gone. and my rt arm and upper thighs are worse than my left *(I'm a lefty) my rt thigh seems to be the most stubborn.. who knows. I'll just keep trying