2nd round of scary rash on 6 year old...

[3BearsMomma]

My daughter is 6. On the first of July she did not have anything other than a mosquito bite on her shoulder upon waking. A short while later she had numerous little "bites" appear. One of these was on her thigh. At the same time what looked like prickly heat started on her neck and shoulders and under her chin. Behind her ears she was red, red. I called the doctor to double check amount of Benadryl to give her. Before I rec'd a return call (just about 20 minutes) the spot on her thigh had grown. When we left the house to go to the doctor I measured the "welt"; it was approximately 1 1/2 x 2 inches. Less than an hour later it was almost double in size. We were sent to the ER at a local children's hospital. Strep tests came back negative. She tested negative for spider bites and there was no mark that indicated a puncture wound of any sort.

After several hours of examination the welt was 5 x 7. We were told it was vasilitis and that it was not contagious. It was unspecified in origin and that 10 days of Clyndomiacin  (300 mg x 3 times daily) would "fix" the problem.

The next day we returned to the doctor. The multitude of "little spots" were gone. The "welt" was still growning. On the 3rd of July she was admitted to the hospital. She rec'd IV antibiotics (Clyndomiacin and Bactrim). Additional bloodwork was done (everything reported to be normal but have no idea exactly what they tested for). She was released and put on additional doses of both antibiotics. The swelling had gone down. And, the color was better.

The "welt" that had been diagnosed as cellusitis when she was admitted was basically gone on the 6th when we followed up with her regular doctor. Things seemed to be going well. I thought that when she finished the remaining doses of the antibiotic this weekend that this would be behind her.

Saturday morning she had a number of new "spots". Saturday night they grew. Now, she has a place on the opposite thigh where the "spots" have grown together to make a place approximately 9 x 11. There is heat to the touch and it is tender. There are many additional small "welts" on both legs, some on her tummy, a few on her back and some under her arms.

We tested for bedbugs as well...
She did get a tick bite on June 16. She has not run a fever of any consequence. She has only had a few episodes of vomitting...likely from so many antibiotics.

Any help would be greatly appreciated. We will be going back in the morning to see the doctor again.

[3BearsMomma]

Thank you so much for the kind reply. She has been tested for lymes disease and rocky mountain spotted fever even though she has not had any of the other horrible symptoms that go along with those.
She was diagnosed with vasculitis the first ER trip and cellulitis the second trip and admittance to the hospital.
The doctor is sending us in the morning (Tuesday) for a follow up with a dermatologist but they no longer believe that it is cellulitis because it should not have reoccurred with the massive doses of antibiotics she has been taking.
I can not tell you how troubling this is. I have spent at least 30 hours in the past 3 days combing the internet trying to find a similar scenario so that I have something, some idea to take with me when I go back to the doctor. The good thing is that no one else in the house has any sign of this. I do have pictures if that might help.
I will have to figure out how to post them to the forum. I just signed up last night in an effort to find someone with a clue as to what is going on with the little one.
Thank you again. I truly appreciate your help.
PS: She has been house bound since July 1 and has not been exposed to the sun or heat. There is no evidence of a bug bite of any sort. And, she has no open wounds (just a small bruise where her brother caught her with the wrong end of the butterfly net).
She makes no complaint of any other symptom.
Thank you again!

[Bhupinder Kaur, MD]

Hello,
I am sorry to hear this.From the symptoms,the only possibility that comes to mind is cellulitis. Cellulitis is a skin infection caused by bacteria.If you have a cut, sore, or insect bite, bacteria can get into the skin and spread to deeper tissues.

Since your daughter has a prior history of tick bite,so it can be the break in skin from where the bacteria gained entry.I would suggest an immediate ER consultation as I/V antibiotics may be needed.

Hope it helps.Take care and pls do keep me posted on how you are doing or if you have any additional doubts.Kind regards.