No faith in doctors, to many trials and failers, not to mention guessing game of what skin condition my daughter MIGHT have lol
I am getting very worried about my daughters bumps and what will happon if they keep getting worse as she ages, instead of fading like the doctors keep saying! I have flown arouse the US looking for the best dermatologists for my eight year old daughter, Nine out of the twelve doctors she's seen say she has a form of KP- but not to worry as she gets older it would get better.. WELL, from what I read here so far about KP - I am finding myself wondering again if she has KP or something else. I have yet to read or see photo's that look just like what my daughter has; My daughter is covered ( in a scattered pattern, not the steady one I've seen in photo's) on her arms, part of her chest, and face by big pimple like bumps -some looking like infected pimples and some like dried up pore bumps (like KP) that are starting to causing her scarring and/or discoloration of the skin. So far her skin is not to damaged, though small craters (don't know proper word) are starting to form. We have tried all kinds of med's and natural remedy's with no consistent improvement. So if as some of you say, this is going to get worse - what more can I do? Does this even sound like KP? And does anyone know who might be the leading expert for these conditions are? I am tired of book worm doctors, who do no more than guess and go off a general condition instead of taking the time to find out which of the recognized sixty seven different conditions grouped into the word KP and exma. PLEASE HELP - Feel free to e-mail me advice too, my address is open to members here.
Thanks,
A very concerned mother

Dear Eeacangela

I am new to keratosispilaris.org so please bear with me.. It would also be very interesting to hear other parents experiences in this area.

KP runs in our family. What also run in our family are; allergies, food intolerances, asthma, ezcema and geographical tongue. And some of my relatives have very severe allergies indeed.

And many of us have KP. In our family I am starting to suspect a casual relationship between MILK ALLERGY (sensitivity to the milk protein casein) and KP. My main reasons for this are (in my immediate family):

1) my mother has mentioned that I started developping KP very early; between 1-1.5yrs old. I was breastfed until 9mths with introduction of foods at around 6mths. My KP is quite ugly, raised, reddish goosbumps with pimples.
2) my oldest boy however hasn't developped KP until now during the last 12 months. He is 8.5yrs old and was diagnosed with milk allergy at 9mths. He has since then had almost no dairyproducts until 12mths ago when we re-introduced dairyproducts into his diet. However he has now re-devlopped his dairy (and soya) sensitivity and we have had to stop all dairyproducts again since Easter. And his KP has stopped its' increase. We have yet to see whether it will disappear though.
3) my youngest boy (3.5yrs) was diagnosed with milk allergy at 6mths and has never really had any dairyproducts at all (he was probably sensitised through my breastmilk!) until about 6mths ago. Since then he's now and again had a taste. And again his upper arms are no longer as smooth..
4) I've since discovered that I'm sensitive to dairyproducts - since I stopped with dairyproducts my IBS has cleared. And although my KP is probably too bad to completely disappear it has gone quite a bit smoother!

I find that sunshine in reasonable (small) dosages also helps my KP.

Personally I would ask a pediactric allergy specialist for a skin*****test to see whether your daughter has any underlying allergies or (food) sensitivities. The reason I would prefer a skin*****test to a blood test (RAST) is that the RAST test will only measure the level of IgE antibodies whereas it might be that for example IgG antibody levels may also play a part in an allergic response.

If you find that your daughter's KP/skin disorder may be allergy related then I've found books on allergy and food intolerances written by Prof. J Brostoff and Linda Gamlin of great help - very informational and pragmatic.

We have also found that keeping our home, environment and our children's food as free from pesticides and synthetic checmicals as is possible all help to reduce their skin and gut irritations.

Best of Luck
Kind Regards
"Raffles"

My name is Allison and I have KP that looks like what you described (craters and all). I didn't get it until I became pregnant with my daughter and I've had it ever since. It really erupted when she was born (she's 3 1/2) and I've been to dermatologist after dermatologist. They all say, "This might work, but it could take 6-12 mos." Nonetheless, I tried all their suggestions: baby oil (carcinogen!!), urea lotion (stinky!), antibiotics (I'd rather save those for when I really need them), and even Vaseline (Double carcinogen!!). Nothing worked and some things even made it worse. Now I have severe scarring.

Recently I was introduced to a Swiss skin care line based entirely on herbal and botanical principles (NO Animal products or by-products). I tried a sample pack on one arm and not the other. 2 weeks later I took pictures of the difference and it was amazing! I ordered my kit right away and have been continuously getting better ever since. In fact, I signed on as a Consultant right away to help others fill their skin care needs (and to get the great discount!). They have products for every age (even infants).

I can e-mail you my Before and After photos so you can compare them with your child's if you like. Just e-mail me and let me know. allisonsullivan@insightbb.com That goes for anyone else reading this, too.

I almost forgot: the skincare company's name is Arbonne International and can be found on the web at www.arbonne.com.

Hi - sounds like you are not getting too far with having your daughter correctly diagnosed. You mention 'craters'. Are these on your daughters cheeks and are the cheeks tending to get red and inflamed (especially when exposed to hot and cold temperatures). There is a KP variant condition called 'atrophoderma vermiculata' which causing scarring of the cheeks. Look up this term on the net and you will find some pictures. I have this condition along with Ulerythema orphryogenes (eyebrows). If I can be of any help let me know. my email is gogorman@orcon.net.nz. It can be frustrating getting a diagnosis and from my experience with these rarer types of KP you have to do a bit of investigating yourself. All the Best.