White scabs may be normal for a baby's scalp. However, mothers need to pay attention, if a newborn has shed their scalp, the baby may have a fungus.
What is white scaly baby scalp?
The baby's scalp has white scales
Your baby's skin is dry and flaky, forming white patches. This is a fairly common phenomenon in infants. Some children only have a small scalp, but many children grow all over the head, which is known as "buffalo shit", or scalp inflammation. Buffalo's scalp is not contagious and is not a sign of being dirty. Most of the time, this condition will go away on its own.
Doctor Nguyen Dinh Huan - Children's Hospital I (HCMC) said: Scalp inflammation is a common, chronic dermatological disease. The lesions of the disease mainly focus on areas of the skin with many sebaceous glands such as the scalp, face and whole body. Dermatitis in infants usually starts as early as 2 - 10 weeks of age and disappears at 8-12 months of age.
What is the cause of a baby's scalp white scales?
The exact cause of infant scalp flaking is still unknown. However, some studies suggest that the main cause is the rapid growth of oil glands and hair follicles. Malassezia fungus grows in the sebaceous glands with bacteria that cause buffalo shit on the scalp in infants.
The phenomenon of increased sebum production is common in young children, even in teenagers. During this period, the hormone levels are quite high, so that may be the cause of this condition.
How to treat scalp inflammation in a newborn
Where is the baby's scalp peeling?
First of all, mothers should not try to grab or rub their hands vigorously because it will damage the baby's skin and become inflamed.
According to doctor Nguyen Dinh Huan, scalp inflammation in babies can be used for children with mineral oil. Or paraffin, vaseline, salicylic acid ointment 2% to soften the scabs on the skin about 2-3 hours before washing hair to make the flakes soft and flake off.
Wash your baby's hair with lemon or low pH shampoo for mild to moderate. If the child is very sick, it should take a few days to completely clean it.
You can use a brush with soft bristles specifically for children, gently brushing after shampooing helps remove scales on the scalp.
Prevent buffalo shit, keep the scalp clean and dry. Wash your hair daily with baby shampoo to remove sebum and dead cells.
On warm days, there is no need to wear a hat because it can squash and moisten the scalp. Choose soft cotton hats to wear on your children.
When should a baby with flaky scalp be taken to a doctor?
When to take children to the doctor?
If the white plaques and scales on the child's head are white, it is only a normal physiological phenomenon, not to worry. But if "buffalo shit" plays into thick chunks on the root of the hair, peeling it up shows that the scalp is a bit wet. Making a baby itchy and scratching the head can have complications of a purulent (first-time) infection, a pimple on the scalp.
Or the plaques on the scalp often form a circle, where the plaque loses hair, causing itching, redness, and swelling. Then this phenomenon is not merely a physiological phenomenon of infants with dry scalp, but has become pathological (head fungus). The disease can cause hair loss, sparse or clustered. Because oily substance secretes many pore screws, it can cause nutritional disorder and hair loss. At this time, the mother is not allowed to arbitrarily apply the medication, but take her to the doctor right away!
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