What You Need to Know About Cradle Cap

What is Cradle Cap?

Cradle cap or infantile seborrheic dermatitis is a chronic, noninflammatory skin condition that causes crusty or oily scaly patches on a baby’s scalp, eyebrows, or other areas of concentrated sebaceous gland activity. While cradle cap isn’t painful, it can produce oily white or yellow scales that are difficult to remove. It is occasionally confused with another skin condition known as atopic dermatitis. However, atopic dermatitis usually causes pronounced itching, while cradle cap does not.

What Cradle Cap looks like

Cradle cap usually appears when babies are between two and six weeks old. It affects 70 percent of infants by three months of age. As your child grows older, the incidence of cradle cap decreases. The condition usually clears up without intervention in a few weeks or months.

What Causes Cradle Cap?

The exact cause of cradle cap is unknown but could be caused by a combination of factors. An excess of skin oil (sebum) in the oil glands and hair follicles in addition to Malassezia, a type of yeast found on the skin, could play a part in the development of cradle cap.

Cradle Cap Symptoms

  • The skin on your baby’s scalp may look greasy
  • White or yellow patches of scales on baby’s scalp
  • The skin on your baby’s scalp may be a different color, rather than exhibit scaling or flaking
  • Temporary hair loss, as the hair should grow back after the cradle cap clears up
  • Oily or dry skin covered with flaky white or yellow scales
  • Mild redness on the skin

It is possible for cradle cap to appear on other parts of the body, especially the areas of heavy sebaceous gland activity. It is sometimes seen on the face, on the eyelids, the nose, on or behind the ears, the diaper area, and the armpits.

Cradle Cap Treatment

  • Wash your baby’s scalp with baby shampoo and rub it gently into the affected areas daily to remove excess oils
  • Massaging the scalp while shampooing will help to break up the patches so they fall off
  • Gently brush their hair with a soft baby brush and the scales should loosen and fall off over time
  • Using an emollient on the scalp before washing can help remove the scales and flakes more easily. Lubricate your baby’s scalp with petroleum jelly (Vaseline), baby oil, mineral oil, olive oil, or doctor-recommended ointment into the scales on your baby’s scalp after shampoo and gentle brushing. However, please be cautious: if the scales don’t come off easily during the washing of your baby’s scalp, don’t rub them or scratch them.

Things to Avoid:

  • Do not scratch the cradle cap, as this could lead to an infection
  • Do not use a steroid cream unless it has been recommended by our office
  • Do not use dandruff shampoos, as not all products are safe for infants

When to Call Us

Please contact our office if you have tried treating the condition at home without success. Although uncommon, in some severe cases, Dr. Leung may need to prescribe medication for this condition.