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Dermatology (Expert Forum)
The Skin Rash that keeps coming back....
Answered by
Alan Rockoff, MD - dermatology, Child Skin Problems
The Rockoff Dermatology Center
Brookline - MA
Welcome to the DERMATOLOGY FORUM! Questions in this forum are answered by Dermatologists from St. Luke's Roosevelt Hospital, under the direction of Andrew Alexis, M.D., M.P.H.
The Skin Rash that keeps coming back....
by beamsa, Mar 05, 2006 12:00AM
Hi there..
So my skin rash is all over. It's not raised and it moves around. It started in January and I have been to a GP and an Allergist and have gotten the "gee I don't know" all three times. It starts as the typical red dots that mush together and when it's bad, it's "lacey".
I have racked my brain about foods I have eaten, soaps and detergents, air polutants..but there is no common denominator. I take Zyrtec when I see spots and it eventually goes away. It will go away for a few days to a week, then resurface. Today it started with spots on my shoulder (mostly on one side) & chest and has moved to my face. It will go to my scalp, ears, chest, arms, palms, trunk, pelvic area, legs and feet...in no particular order. It doesn't itch a whole lot..but I can feel it. The GP gave me cortizone a shot and it went away..but came back after it wore off...but then it went away after a day. I got bloodwork and it was all fine.
I have been reading and researching and I have yet to go to a dermatologist.
How do you know if it's an allergic reaction or a sign of something else going on in my body.
The time and the way it appears makes me think it's not an allergic reaction (contact dermatitis????) because I cannot figure out why. I have changed my laundry detergent because at first, I thought it was just that...I used mild or no soaps..I use sulfate free shampoo..I eat the same way I have been eating for years..nothing new. No supplements...no crazy perfumes or lotions..I try to use natural products.
WHich is why it might be a sign of something else...
2 weeks ago when it resurfaced, it first appeared on my scalp. I was sick with a cold and I had a hooded sweatshirt on with the hood on my head. I noticed my forhead feeling tight. So it was at my scalp, forhead, ears, behind my ears..but didnt go much further--I thought it had resurfaced because I was sick and my immune system was down...I got it to go away with Zyrtec and then a few days later, i was in Las Vegas for a night on business when my cold got worse from the flight and air, it was freezing cold and my rash came in full force. I was miserable...
So incidents like that make me think it has nothing to do with allergic reactions....
Any advice you can give would help..
Do you reccommend that I see a dermatologist?? GO back to the Allergist?? Skip both and go to my GP?? I don't have a ton of money to be trying all these office visits..
I know rashes are hard to diagnose but I would like to get advice on what type of tests to get and what to ask/tell my DR...
thanks
So my skin rash is all over. It's not raised and it moves around. It started in January and I have been to a GP and an Allergist and have gotten the "gee I don't know" all three times. It starts as the typical red dots that mush together and when it's bad, it's "lacey".
I have racked my brain about foods I have eaten, soaps and detergents, air polutants..but there is no common denominator. I take Zyrtec when I see spots and it eventually goes away. It will go away for a few days to a week, then resurface. Today it started with spots on my shoulder (mostly on one side) & chest and has moved to my face. It will go to my scalp, ears, chest, arms, palms, trunk, pelvic area, legs and feet...in no particular order. It doesn't itch a whole lot..but I can feel it. The GP gave me cortizone a shot and it went away..but came back after it wore off...but then it went away after a day. I got bloodwork and it was all fine.
I have been reading and researching and I have yet to go to a dermatologist.
How do you know if it's an allergic reaction or a sign of something else going on in my body.
The time and the way it appears makes me think it's not an allergic reaction (contact dermatitis????) because I cannot figure out why. I have changed my laundry detergent because at first, I thought it was just that...I used mild or no soaps..I use sulfate free shampoo..I eat the same way I have been eating for years..nothing new. No supplements...no crazy perfumes or lotions..I try to use natural products.
WHich is why it might be a sign of something else...
2 weeks ago when it resurfaced, it first appeared on my scalp. I was sick with a cold and I had a hooded sweatshirt on with the hood on my head. I noticed my forhead feeling tight. So it was at my scalp, forhead, ears, behind my ears..but didnt go much further--I thought it had resurfaced because I was sick and my immune system was down...I got it to go away with Zyrtec and then a few days later, i was in Las Vegas for a night on business when my cold got worse from the flight and air, it was freezing cold and my rash came in full force. I was miserable...
So incidents like that make me think it has nothing to do with allergic reactions....
Any advice you can give would help..
Do you reccommend that I see a dermatologist?? GO back to the Allergist?? Skip both and go to my GP?? I don't have a ton of money to be trying all these office visits..
I know rashes are hard to diagnose but I would like to get advice on what type of tests to get and what to ask/tell my DR...
thanks
Doctor's Answer
by Alan Rockoff, MD, Mar 06, 2006 12:00AM
, Mar 06, 2006 12:00AM
I would guess that you have eczema, a hereditary condition that itches, comes, and goes, especially in cold times of the year. Everyone looks for changes in soaps and detergents, but that hardly ever turns up anything useful. I don't think you need tests or allergy evaluations--you ought to see a dermatologist, who should be able to diagnose you by looking, and then can prescribe something helpful.
Cortisone shots help eczema, but it's not a good idea to take cortisone internally on an ongoing basis, so creams are a better idea.
Best.
Dr. Rockoff
Cortisone shots help eczema, but it's not a good idea to take cortisone internally on an ongoing basis, so creams are a better idea.
Best.
Dr. Rockoff
Member Comments (1)
by foramina, Sep 20, 2008 05:26PM
A related discussion, Zyrtec and cream ingredients was started.
