Look like bites, and itch like bites, but they don't go away.

I am a white female, 44 years old, 30 lbs overweight, living in Florida.

I have bite looking bumps spread over my whole body.  They have no pattern; some are several inches from other bumps.  I count eight bumps on my front torso.  None are clumped together, but are at least an inch apart.  There are no red traces between bumps or anywhere else.  They are not hive looking and do not burn, but they do itch!  Some bumps do not heal, but have been there for several months.  Did I mention that they itch!  I have been suffering with this for 3 years.

I am using hydrocortisone cream, clindamycin phosphate gel, and antibiotics per Doctors prescription.  This medication has had no effect on the bumps.

The bumps are about

[Alan Rockoff, MD]

The only condition I know of which resembles what you describe is folliculitis.  Scabies (itch mites) are out of the question, given the duration of your problem and the fact that your family doesn't have it.

The only way bumps can "have a piece of skin missing just adjacent to the head of the bump," is if you scratch them.  Therefore, unless you stop scratching, they won't go away.

The treatment I suggest you discuss with your doctor is using an oral antibiotic for 10 days or so, washing daily with an antiseptic cleanser like PhisoHex, and applying an antibiotic ointment like Bactroban both to the spots and to the nostrils nightly, because bacteria live in the nose and can cause problems elsewhere.

Also, using an anti-itch lotion like Sarna (non-prescription) whenever you feel like itching may help and you can start right away.

Best.

Dr. Rockoff

[bumps]

From what I read on the net, you could possibly have just saved me from much prolonged agony!  I will take this diagnosis to my doctor for a revised treatment program, and will return to comment on the results.  I am optimistic!

[Alan Rockoff, MD]

Excellent.  Good luck!

Dr. Rockoff

[bumps]

Hmm,

I took the prescribed sporonex 2x/day for ten days.  No help.  I am now trying tea tree oil.  

There are two new ones on my leg.  I have a couple on my neck, and a couple on my face.  They wont go away for months.  No fun.  

I am close to being an RN, and am doing an operating room externship.  So I get to worry about my having open sores around sick people.  There is no way not to scratch.

I am open to suggestions...  trust me on this.

[bumps2]

Hi,
This comment is for bumps.... What you have described sounds very much like what my sister has been going through. They look like mesquito bites, but aren't. She is a young adult, not overweight at all, and has had this problem for about 1-2 years. She has been to 5 dermatologists, who have diagnosed it as being MUCINOSIS and have all said they do not know enough about the disease to treat her. We have desperately been looking for someone who has had any suggestions for what to do. Please post back with anything that may have worked for you... We are currently trying to find a dr. to help. It has also gotten worse since her pregnancy.
Thank you.

[Ikceb]

Your afflication sounds similar to mine--except I've had it for 7 or 8 years now.   My "bumps" don't last that long--maybe a day or so, but they ITCH severely.  I can go several days without having a "bump" and then I'll get two or three in one day, often on my face, too.  Right now there's one on my chin and one on my forehead.  I still have a few from yesterday, one on my chest, another on my hip and one on my neck, but they're fading away now and the itch is waning. Sometimes I'll get one on the edge of my lip and the swelled spot makes it look like I was socked in the mouth.  Although I don't know if it's related--if I take a really hot shower, my chest and upper back break out in bumps that are very similar, but they go away within an hour or two.  
I've been to 3 different specialists and I've tried every one of their suggested drugs/remedies, all to no avail.  I've also been the route of using natural soaps with no fragrance or dye, etc., but nothing has EVER made any difference whatsoever.  I have spent an enormous amount of money trying to cure this problem, and I have to say that I've pretty much just learned to accept that I have to live with it.  My latest theory is that I'm allergic to my own hair--is this possible?  My husband and 3 daughters have never been affected by anything like this.

[louisa2009]

A related discussion, Constant itching was started.

[burnettracer]

My son is going through the exact same thing posted here. He has had these bites that will not go away. It is almost a year now and noone seems to know what to do. I have so many different doctors tell me they don't know and I am at the last piont it feels. cardinal glennon doctor wants me to take him to grand rounds at st louis university to let a bunch od doctors look at him. But then I found out they are all premed. He has had them since march and they are the exact same ones. I can tell you where each one is. If I do not keep them covered with duoderm then he will icthc them until they are a bloody mess and then they get infected. How do you tell a 5 year old not to itch. It is so so sad and I just want him better. Please help!! ***@****

[bell444]

A related discussion, 3 bumps was started.

[stitchwithanitch]

A related discussion, itch was started.