Labial Adhesion issues,alternatives?

[BlueEyedBabies]

Hi
I'm new here,well sort of anyway. I joined a while back but have been spending more time over at TheBabyWearer and WoolyWonder forums. But I thought this might be a better place to ask this question.

My 2 year old DD has labial adhesion.It's about 80% closed. Does anyone know of alternative methods of dealing with this besides the 2 options the Dr. gave us earlier this year when this happened(which was~Use estrogen cream or ~Do what they used to do [and don't do anymore thankful] pull the labia apart using some sort of tool thingy. Talk about PAIN! That makes my whole body shake just thinking about it!)

Our DD had full labial adhesion about 10 months ago. We took her to the Dr. and were given the cream. I didn't want to use it but ended up doing it anyway. After 2 weeks of using it the adhesion was fully open. It then started to close again.I have not taken her back to the Dr. as I know what he'll tell me-use the hormone cream.

The Dr. had mentioned that they sometimes suggest using Vasaline daliy on the labia for girls who tend to have it close up again. So I tried using lanolin but that didn't work. I then tried almond oil. Which works pretty good actually, but her labia still slowly has creeped more closed.

My DD has very delicate,super thin,ultra sensitive skin down there. She hates wearing underwear unless we're out of the house. She usually wears a t-shirt dress and goes commando,LOL Oddly enough neither of my girls like wearing any pants what-so-ever,just a comfy dress.Maybe wearing underwear would help?

Anyone know very much about the different creams Dr.'s use for this? One is a synthetic form of estrogen and the other has the actual hormone in it. Is one better/safer than the other? Whom/what do they get the real estrogens from? Humans? Animals?

I did notice a slight change in my DD labia after using the cream.And by this I mean I noticed a permanent change that didn't change back after we stopped using the cream. It's just in the appearance of her labia,I'm trying to think of the right word to use here,all I can come up with is, mature maybe(?) Just an ever-so-slight change,nothing drastic!

I know I can "just leave it" but I don't know if I'm comfortable having my DD with full labial adhesion,which is where she's headed. My biggest concern is if she would get an infection because of it. (Last time she had a pinhole or two in the full adhesion.Urine getting inside and causing problems was an issue)

What about using almond oil coupled with an essential oil? What essential oils would be good for keeping the skin from growing together. I'm hesetent to use Lavender since that's suppose to help skin growth. What about some sort of herbal salve?

Thanks to any who take the time to reply!

[Annikate]

I posted about this a few months ago. I'm using calendula oil on dd now (hers is starting slowly to close again too.)

I did use the estrogen cream the first time but I really don't want to use it again.

Hoping some others chime in and say what's worked for them.

[BlueEyedBabies]

Thanks Annikate for the reply I did a search here to try and find something on this issue and I saw that thread.
For some strange reason,as common as they say labial adhesion in children is, there isn't much on the subject.

Anyone else have some ideas or things that have worked?

[BlueEyedBabies]

Oh forgot to say one more thing
I've noticed that if I put on the oil right after DD gets out of the bath then that seems to help pretty good. I didn't figure that out until recently though.

I don't want to use the cream again at all but I may have to just to get it open again then start over with using some alternative methodes to keep it open.

[laohaire]

Just curious (for those who know) - what happens if you just leave it alone?

I've read about these many times on these boards, so it seems like it's not at all uncommon. Yet I've never heard of long-term issues from labial adhesions (from friends, media, etc.).

It seems odd to me that they seem to be so "common" if they lead to problems - in my experience, the body rarely breaks unless interfered with. Anyone know what's going on with these?

[BlueEyedBabies]

This is what was beginning to happen with my DD,with the fused labia blocking the urethra....

Possible complications
Some of the possible complications of labial adhesions include:

* Urination problems - such as changes to the direction of the urine stream (for example, the urine may squirt sideways instead of straight down) and dribbling urine after going to the toilet (because a small amount of urine collects within the fused labia).
* Urinary tract infections - about 20 per cent of girls with labial adhesions develop asymptomatic bacteriuria (bacteria in the urine without symptoms of infection) and up to 40 per cent experience urinary tract infections.
* Hydronephrosis - if the labial adhesions block the urethra, the child is unable to empty their bladder. Without treatment, this will lead to an abnormally enlarged kidney (hydronephrosis) caused by the build-up of urine.

[Mollie]

my daughter had the same thing, and we went the estrogen cream route, but it seemed like it made her sting.

the good news--- she is 5 years old now, and seems fine.

[BlueEyedBabies]

Originally Posted by Mollie

my daughter had the same thing, and we went the estrogen cream route, but it seemed like it made her sting.

the good news--- she is 5 years old now, and seems fine.

I also noticed it made my DD sting too. I tried putting a little bit of lanolin on it to help with that,poor thing. But I had to apply it at alternate times of the estrogen cream. I don't know if it really helped much,it seemed to work for a little bit.

Glad to hear your 5 yr old is fine now! I look forward to that!

[Annikate]

DD's new doctor told me that if it happened to dd again he'd prescribe something more *natural*. He's not your average ped. so I trust him.

I think I'm going to have to call him tomorrow 'cause dd's is closing more and more.

I'll lyk what he recommends.

[WinterBaby]

Generally labial adhesions are caused by maybe sensitive skin or irritation from rashes and whatnot in combination with low estrogen. No underwear probably helps keep the area from getting too irritated actually, I'd think. They generally resolve by themselves in puberty when the hormones get going. So if they aren't causing problems it's fine to just leave them alone. But given that your daughter has had those problems I'd probably go ahead and use the estrogen cream again, putting it only right on the adhesion in the smallest area possible with a tiny applicator. The real hormones are obtained from pregnant mares, if I recall, and it's not a terribly humane collection, so that might incline me towards the sythetics. You're supposed to continue the hormones like a month or more after the labia is open I think - since really it's still pretty raw and prone to closure for some lengthy time after treatment. After that, switching to some kind of cream or oinment might help it stay open. I'd stay away from essential oils if she has sensitive skin, myself (since my daughter reacts badly to some.) And I'd try using a very mild and thicker style oinment versus an oil, since the oil seems like it would absorb pretty quick, to work on preventing readhesion. And anything else to keep the level of irritation down - like reexamining her soaps or detergents to see if any of them are bothering her slightly.

ETA: A note on the stinging - I think they also offer some kind of hormone patch you place very close to the labia to deliver hormones locally as an alternative to creams.

[BlueEyedBabies]

Annikate:Yes please do LMK what your ped. says! I'd love to know.I'd really appreciate that!


WinterBaby: Thank you for your reply and all that info! One of the first things I did and have tried to be very cautious about is the soaps.
And I never heard of the patch thing,that sounds much better. I will have to look into that. The pedi didn't even mention that option. He didn't even know much about the different types of estrogen creams,he just said he always uses "Premarin" and didn't know of the other synthetic kind.He had a blank look on his face once we started asking questions about the medicine. DH knew more than the pedi. did and he just looked up a bunch of info on the internet,LOL
I'll try to use something else like you suggested "a very mild and thicker style oinment".


On a different note,I got to thinking last night and looking in some herbal books. Black Cohosh is said to possess estrogen-like qualities. I wonder if making a slave with a little bit of that herb in it and applying it to the labia would be good? I would definitely want to be careful not to make something to strong or irritating to the skin.
I have no idea if it would help or not,I'm just throwing out an idea.

[Annikate]

Right now I'm using calendula oil after her bath. I'm putting it on w/a Q-tip like I did the estrogen cream, rubbing downward and using a little bit of pressure.

I'm going to see if that does the trick before I call the ped, but I will let you know if/when I do.

BTW, I love your dc's names!

[BlueEyedBabies]

Originally Posted by Annikate

Right now I'm using calendula oil after her bath. I'm putting it on w/a Q-tip like I did the estrogen cream, rubbing downward and using a little bit of pressure.

I'm going to see if that does the trick before I call the ped, but I will let you know if/when I do.

BTW, I love your dc's names!

Okay sounds good. I really hope your calendula oil works though!


Thanks about my dc's names! I owe it all to my DH (Slaine). He really likes to pick meaningful names that have to do with his Ulster Scottish history

[laneysprout]

You might want to try emu oil, which has worked for me in the past. It is really gentle, odor-free, and can be ordered from a few places online. A little goes a long way.

[BlueEyedBabies]

Originally Posted by laneysprout

You might want to try emu oil, which has worked for me in the past. It is really gentle, odor-free, and can be ordered from a few places online. A little goes a long way.

Thanks for that tip Alana! I'll check into that

[Annikate]

Originally Posted by laneysprout

You might want to try emu oil, which has worked for me in the past. It is really gentle, odor-free, and can be ordered from a few places online. A little goes a long way.

Great idea! I use it for other things but never thought of using it for this.

[LoriR]

It's a relief to find this thread. My five month old has the same problem. At first it was on the lower part of her. Now some of the lower section has opened, thank goodness -- but I'm worried because the area where urine comes out has closed up. Is that normal with this condition?

Ugh.

[kymholly]

I'm subbing to this thread, 'cause my dd2 has had the beginnings of this issue, too. The ped gave us a script for the hormone cream, & told me to use it for 2 weeks, then use vasoline daily for the next month. I didn't feel right about using the cream, so I just used vasoline. It seemed to work ok... she's never closed completely and it's been over a year now.

I really wonder if this isn't becoming so, "common" because it's the new thing to look for. I mean, unless they completely close & cause the problems that have been mentioned, why not just let it be? It really bothers me to think that now there's going to be a whole bunch of little girls growing up that have been treated w/estrogen. I wonder what side effects they are going to "discover" for this in 5-10 years?

[BlueEyedBabies]

Originally Posted by LoriR

It's a relief to find this thread. My five month old has the same problem. At first it was on the lower part of her. Now some of the lower section has opened, thank goodness -- but I'm worried because the area where urine comes out has closed up. Is that normal with this condition?

Ugh.

The adhesion can happen anywhere top or bottom,so I would say yes,this is "normal" with this condition.It's good that at least the urine can get out through the hole at the bottom.But because the urine has to constantly pass so close to the vagina to come out, keep an eye out to make sure that it doesn't cause an infection. Your baby girl is only 5 months old with this,Ugh! I hope it continues to open all by itself! I wish there was more help to pass along to you!

[BlueEyedBabies]

Originally Posted by kymholly

I'm subbing to this thread, 'cause my dd2 has had the beginnings of this issue, too. The ped gave us a script for the hormone cream, & told me to use it for 2 weeks, then use vasoline daily for the next month. I didn't feel right about using the cream, so I just used vasoline. It seemed to work ok... she's never closed completely and it's been over a year now.

I really wonder if this isn't becoming so, "common" because it's the new thing to look for. I mean, unless they completely close & cause the problems that have been mentioned, why not just let it be? It really bothers me to think that now there's going to be a whole bunch of little girls growing up that have been treated w/estrogen. I wonder what side effects they are going to "discover" for this in 5-10 years?

I agree you probably could just leave it alone if it doesn't cause problems and it isn't constantly becoming more closed.As long as there is openings for the body to function as it naturally should,it seems like in time the condition fixes itself. The vagina is a self-cleaning part of our body,and it has a natural function to rid itself of the continual fluid that it releases.And of course,we need a hole to pee out of,LOL.
I hate the whole hormone use on baby girls/ little girls too.I fear the side effect also. There has to be other ways to deal with this! There just doesn't seem to be alot of info on this subject for other options yet.
I'm still wondering about using some sort of homemade ointment/salve that has herbs in it to see if that helps. Black Cohosh and Hops both (from what I've read and I've just "scratched the surface") have estrogen-like qualities to them. If I do try anything I'll be sure to post the results