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Bruise turned into rash

I had blood draw a little over a week ago. The site turned into a large dark bruise approx. 3 inches across. The bruise turned to the characteristic yellow a few days ago, and was almost completely gone. Today, I noticed itching where the bruise had been, and I now have small raised itchy bumps exactly where the bruise was. I put cortisone cream on the rash; however, it burned quite a bit, and the itching is pretty intense. What would cause a bruise to turn into a rash when it heals?
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9981989 tn?1407067691
This is not the first time ive gotten the rash over a bruise, but it is really turning into a pain n de ---. I have caught poison ivey, sumac, and oak, and i figured maybe the forum is in my blood or something... i have had steroid shots, and they have helped, but this is still a reaccuring annoying issue, that no one around here has even tried to help me with...   ELCY NC
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9981989 tn?1407067691
Sir.. I know it was in 08 you were wondered about the itchy rash than forms over a bruise...  Please has anyone come up with the answer?  Or may it possibly have n e thing to do with the shingle rash???
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Avatar universal
About 3 years ago I experienced this same strange rash after a severe shin bruise. The bruise (from hitting against a bed frame) was very painful, and turned all kinds of deep purple colors after a few days.  Then I had to fly back home (was on vacation) and after the flight I noticed a deep purple area down at my ankle, far below the bruise. (Hematoma??) Also, my ankle was very swollen with edema.

After a few days that faded, but I began to notice an itchiness around the bruise, as it healed. Then the itchiness turned into a very large deep red rash, and was beginning to look pretty ugly after a week or so. My dr. prescribed some antihistamines, but they had no effect whatsoever. It got way worse, and then spread to my other leg!! So both legs, from the knee down, were almost entirely covered by deep red and raised blistery patches of red. I ended up going to the ER, and they kept me for 2 nights, running batteries of tests. Put me on antibiotics, thinking it was MRSA, (by then my legs from the knees down were so swollen my ankles had all but disappeared) but then finally a dermatologist examined me and diagnosed me with hives. By that time these hives were covering my entire body!  It was a nightmare.

After hooking me up to steroids instead of antibiotics the hives almost completely disappeared overnight. And they put me on Prednisone, which took care of the rest.  But a few weeks after that, the hives returned on their own. Long story short, I battled them for almost 2 years, with increasingly larger doses of several different antihistamines. They finally began to disappear, after which I had to wean off of all the drugs for several months.  

For the most part these hives have left me in peace, but on occasion they return in small spots, flare up for a few weeks and then disappear again. The only thing that seems to set them off is maybe stress.  I've wondered if hormones have played a part, as I'm a menopausal woman. But I've never had hives before in my life, or any other allergy to speak of.  I think this is just one of those unexplained medical ailments.  It was comforting though, to see so many other people suffering the same crazy symptoms!

I hope this may help anyone who is wondering how to treat these rashes! Steroids and/or mega doses of antihistamines is what worked for me.
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Avatar universal
I also develop a rash over the site of any large bruise about a week or so after the bruise begins to heal. The worse the bruise, the worse the rash will be. This started about 5 years ago. Recently, I happened to be in the hospital still, with an asthma exacerbation, when it started, and noticed on the daily lab tests that my RBC and Hemoglobin levels started dropping also! RBC dropped below normal, hemoglobin got right down to the limit of normal.

I DO however have some autoimmune and immune stuff going on - I have had asthma and eczema since childhood, also have CVID, and multiple allergies and sensitivities, including sun allergy and being sensitive to my own sweat and tears during bad times. Over the past few years, I developed IMPP, and as yet unidentified other autoimmune issues which are messing with my insulin production and sensitivity, causing sporadic kidney, liver, skin, and blood vessel inflammation, all of which normalize with high-doses of steroids over a 4-6wk period...

But the first thing I noticed leading up to all the autoimmune stuff was this horrible maddeningly itchy rash anywhere I would get a bruise. For example all over my belly after getting heparin shots while hospitalized for asthma. 2 weeks after getting home, the rash would start. Docs couldn't figure it out.  At least now I know to expect it. And I also learned to limit heparin shots to my arms. Still bruises, but not as bad, and I can't reach to scratch in my sleep. When I get it on an area I can reach in my sleep, I wake up raw and often end up with cellulitis on top of it.
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Avatar universal
I have been having this for a few years now.  I get an overlapping red circles over the burse like I am  allergic to it. I itches with such intensity. I put Benadryl cream and that does help the itching.  So it is like I'm allergic to my bruises. It also seems to go in cycles.  It goes along with the cold sore I get on my tongue.  Does anyone else with the itchy bruises get ulcers on their tongues at the same time?
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Avatar universal
I to fell on carpet wearing jeans, a bruise developed and now have red bumps and itchy. Did yours ever go away?
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