Red Itchy "Bites"

Please help! For over a month I have been getting bitten in my apartment by some mysterious critter. I have itchy red bumps that look like bug bites all over my legs, arms, stomach and, occasionally, collar bone.  I saw a dermatologist about 3 weeks ago and he said that they looked like bites since they generally comes in rows of 3. He assumed they were from bed bugs.  I've become so paranoid that I clean my apartment with lysol everyday. I had a bug guy come in to look for bed bugs and he didn't find any. I threw away my old couch and purchased mattress and box spring covers, but I'm still getting these itchy welts. I continue to check my sheets and no tell tale signs of bed bugs.

Today I came home, cleaned my apartment, scattered boric acid all around my apartment, sprayed my sheets with rubbing alcohol (as the bug guy suggested). After all that I finally felt safe to take a nap, but I woke up with a brand new bite on my elbow! I have not seen a single suspicious bug. I used to find carpet beetles, but haven't seen one in weeks.  Any ideas what could be causing this? Any advice would be greatly appreciated- can't take the itching anymore!

[Bhupinder Kaur, MD]

Hello,
One of the possibilities for such itchy bumps is scabies. Scabies is characterized by intense itching, usually at night and by small insect-type bites lesions on the skin. Diagnosis of scabies is made by scraping the skin and viewing the material under a microscope to see the characteristic mite or eggs.

It is very difficult to precisely confirm a diagnosis without examination and investigations and the answer is based on the medical information provided. For exact diagnosis, you are requested to consult your doctor. I sincerely hope that helps. Take care and please do keep me posted on how you are doing.

[Feisty2u]

(PLEVA) pityriasis lichenoides et varioliformis acuta (PLEVA)
               I have no idea what or why I have these outbreaks.

I was diagnosed by my dermatologist with (PLEVA)  04/18/12.
Tiny red blister like bumps under the skin, first started in 2008, when my sister had breast cancer. She called me to come stay with her through oral radiation treatments. It was a very stressful year. I had returned home only a few times.
I posted pictures from an outbreak in 06/21/2009. There is a water treatment plant about 2 miles as a crow flys from where I live. When to my suprize my white ceramic tub had turned brown. I had been taking my long hot baths in that water?

I have found a small old pharmacy, that has liquid CAMPHOR SPIRIT. I started using it before I was diagnosed by my dermatologist with (PLEVA)  04/18/12.  It is a drying agent and has really helped me in clearing up the outbreaks. It has 84% alcohol and labled danger/poison.  Maybe if the child suffering with (PLEVA) just rubbing alcohol will give them some comfort.