You need to check this out:

MOST of you have dermatitis herpetiformis. NO it is not herpes. It's named that because it LOOKS like herpes. It is actually gluten rash or celiac rash caused by gluten intolerance. You may or may not have celiac disease. These things are not contagious. When you scratch you do not spread the rash it is just breaking out farther. How do I know? Because I have it. Yes, I had misdiagnosis by Dr. How did I find out what it was? I found this site months ago & wrote down the name of every malady proposed on this thread & then checked each one out systematically. Google it, you will find tons of sites & photos too. The photos are toward the extreme so you may not quite look like those. What is the cure? Eat gluten free. Totally gluten free. Be careful, there are many "hidden" glutens out there. I found it in russian dressing & chicken bouillon. Learn the names of glutens. NO BEER. Wine has to be made in the USA. Read all the ingredients on labels & know what may be a gluten. Do your research. It isn't easy but I did it. I am now gluten free (totally) for 3 weeks. Yes, I still get itchy blisters. Why? Because you have to be gluten free for a minimum of 6 months before you are guaranteed they won't come back. If you screw up & eat gluten they can come back. This is what the Dr. will tell you too. The cure is NO gluten. There is a drug to help with the rash called dapsone but I choose not to use it because IMO it has too many dangerous side effects & your blood has to be monitored every 2 weeks. Steroids (some of you have mentioned) will make it go away temporarily. When I was misdiagnosed they put me on them & they made it go away. But you can't stay on those things & within weeks of quitting the rash comes back. Antihistamines may help too. I had those too but the minute you quit it all comes back. I am severely gluten intolerant. You may be less so or more so. There is a guaranteed fix for those of you who are gluten intolerant. Go gluten free. Period. I know your pain --- I am suffering too. I'm getting better but may have a full fledged outbreak as I said for the next 6 months or maybe even longer (Gads, I hope not!). But this is what we have to do.        

i'm sorry, but maybe 1 or 2 ppl in a large household could be gluten intolerant. but not a whole family. and to come on all of a sudden like it has. i don't think so. this has to be something else. i don't know what and i can only guess like the rest of us. but something has to be done. there must be something "new" being put in our water, food, drinks. there is something we all have in common that is causing this.

Did you know that if it's DH then that is a diagnosis of celiac disease? AND it's genetic? It runs in families. Don't know about your hubby but your kids could certainly have it from a parent. AND yes, it can come on very suddenly. I'm not saying this is what you have but if you don't advocate for yourself & check things out then you will continue to suffer & continue to get misdiagnoses from Dr.'s like you did the scabies.

i have been tested for scabies by 3 different Dr's, also a bunch of other things. now i live in Australia, so many of the things ppl in this thread are trying to sort out having / using the same of, we don't have. in ref to the "runs in families" no-one else in my family has it. no-one in my hubby's family has it. and also, and the most important thing is: friends who have visited us now have it also. it is contagious i think. or i have something in my house that they are getting it from. wether it be food or something they are touching idk. but like i said, i have nothing new in my house.

also, i have NO redness at all except when i scratch one so much i get a small infection in it. and once it has dried up and gets a scab when it falls off i have a perfect circular hole there. not all of my tiny bumps have liquid in them. just a few, but when i pop those that do from scratching yes they spread. many pictures from many websites showing scabies, DH (yes i looked) dermatitis and many many other things, none and all look like mine. 1 pic out of 100's will look like what i have from all of those sites. so, which is it if any? when i have my next Dr app, i will however get him to do a few more test, one for DH just incase. but, why would my friends get it too??

How long have you been living in Australia? Any correlation to the time you moved there? Is there a pest company who treats the house either inside or out? Have you had any testing done on the water for organisms or contamination? How long have you been living in this particular house? Have you been in the attic to check for mold of any kind? Do they have basements there? Check that?
Could it be fleas? Not implying anything here ; it's just that things happen you know? ANY chance at all it might be bed bugs? Paper fleas?
You know, an allergist might be a good one to see.

i have lived in Oz for over 35 years. and in this house for nearly 4 years. no basements, no attics, water is the same as everywhere else, no mold, already had someone to check for bedbugs and no fleas. i am allergic to nearly everything. i can't use soap, nearly all shampoo's, conditioners, alcohol, anything with alcohol in it, perfume's included, makeup. i can only wear gold or silver earrings and have had the same ones in for 10 years. same with my rings i had to take off.  no new clothes, bedding, have used the same brands of bodywashes/ lotions for years and nothing is different there either.
i have had mild dermatitis since a child and know the difference between that and this. Dr's have said it nothing like it and wouldn't turn into this. all of them say it is "contact dermatitis". so as i have come in contact with nothing new, where has it come from. my family and friends got it weeks after me. this is baffeling to say the least.

I'm so sorry. You obviously have major sensitivities to many things & that could explain your kids as they are likely to take on your allergies. But that doesn't explain your hubby & friends. I don't know what to say. Wish I could help.
Hugs

I have bilsters that are specifically located around the wrists and ankles and a patch on my shin. When the blisters dry up the spot becomes scaly looking. The mark left is purplish rather than red. The blisters pop up randomly for no specific reason and at any time of the year. However, they may be related to stress. I went to a dermatologist and he diagnosed Lichen Planus. It has nothing to do with lichens but is name this because of the scaly appearance when the blisters dry up. I researched this condition and the symptoms described fit perfectly. Steroid cream was prescribed.
This condition usually occurs in people in their forties. It is not contagious and the cause is not known. It will eventually go away but this may take several years.

I as well get this rash and its caused from stress.
I have to relax, destress and bath in a avino oatmeal bath.
Helps dry it up and keep skin moisturized.
Hope this helps.

Thank you so much to everyone who posted here! As many of you have said, I thought I was the only one having this problem. My rash would start as itching just below my lower lip. Gradually small blisters would form, which itched and then ruptured. Eventually my lip would crack. I tried cold sore medicine which was horribly painful and didn't help. The only thing that kept it under control is a cortisone called Triamcinolone. I went to see my dermatologist who eventually referred me to an allergist. It turns out that in my case, it is something called contact dermatitis. The most common contact dermatitis is from poison oak, which now that I think about it, is exactly what my rash looked like. Basically what happens is that I come into contact with something I'm allergic to, and then (within 1-4 days) my lip reacts to it. Contact dermatitis is different than other allergies because you generally don't react right away to the allergen. For example, with a food allergy or a bee sting, you usually have a reaction right away. Unfortunately with it taking 1-4 days, it is almost impossible to determine what I'm allergic to. The allergist offered to do something called patch testing, but he said they only test for about 30 different things. He said there are literally hundreds if not thousands of things that could be causing this. We decided instead to keep me on the Triamcinolone since it is dirt cheap and because my allergy is intermittent. He said if I start needing the Triamcinolone every day, then he would like to do some testing.

Jenny, It might behoove you to keep a log of everything you come in contact with & then you could narrow it down.????? Just a suggestion.

Can you help me out? At the end of October I had a small break out of bubbley skin on my elbow, with some benedryl it went away in an hour & didn't come back. But then in the begining of November I had a HUGE break out. These bubbles were all over my arms (but not above the elbows) and all over my legs, including one on the top of my foot. This was as soon as I woke up. My mom brought me tot he hospital b/c our Doctor's were closed and the lady said it was a rash. When we told her aboslutely none of our stuff has been changed she said it could be something in the air triggering it. It all cleared up by the end of the night. I wa son benedryl for a week. Right up until after Thanksgiving I was fine & didn't see the return of them. But then they came back & I have been dealing with small, itchy patches of them appearing daily since. They only appear on my arms and/or legs. They seem to bubble most when exposed to heat (I sleep with a heated blanket for example and that night I had 'em everywhere, they look absolutely horrible.) I am at a loss here, I have no idea what's going on & it's really freaking me out now.

If it makes any difference, I'm also an asthmatic with severe asthma attacks in the Winter. But I've been one for 17 years & have never dealt with this, so I don't think they're connected. I haven't changed my medications recently either.

All this looks like Prurigo Nodularis.  I have it now.   Rental surfboard in the Philippines.  I am using hdyrocortisone, coco butter, fungus (aka jock itch and atheletes foot and vaginal),and  antibiotic, creams.  And a poison ivy scrub that is pretty good.   All over the counter.  The first two will stop the itching.   I have not fiqured out how to kill it.   At this time there is no known cure.   They do not even know what it is.  
R.R.Sudborough

Hi, you are the only person on this thread who has described pretty much exactly what I have been experiencing for about 6 years, including pigment loss. Did you ever end up going to the doctor? I live in Iowa, and the climate is very dry in the winter and very humid in the summer, and I experience my symptoms year-round, although this has been a particularly odd winter this year. The temperature has fluctuated a lot (it was 54 degrees today!), and my legs are the worst they have been in years. Please tell me you got some answers! It sounds like everyone else has had to search and search, with no real solution.

I broke out severely with these very itchy, liquid filled  blisters for the first time in August. I talked to a pharmacist they told me it was poison ivy, oak or sumac so they told me to use ivy dry as benadryl topical wouldn't work, within hours of using the ivy dry the blisters got worse, I went to the doctors he said the same thing the pharmacist said and gave me steroids to take,  this worked it cleared it up.  Twice since then it has come back not as severe as the first time, but on both arms between the wrist and elbow not just the one spot as the first time and its not from the sun or heat as it is January in Michigan right now and it came back.  I think stress may bring it on for me but I have used benadryl which doesn't help the itch, I've used calamine lotion which seems to work somewhat.   While talking to my neighbor she told me to look on this site:  



http://www.coconut-oil-central.com/coconut-oil-poison-ivy.html

click onto this site then go to the side bar and click under cures and look at  all the things it states that coconut oil can cure.  Here is a few statements I copied and pasted from the site under cures:   coconut oil can cure and protect you from herpes.....Coconut oil jock itch? End the discomfort and frustration of this skin fungal infection of the groin with coconut oil (CNO), the world’s all natural, fungus-fighting tropical oil......Coconut oil eczema blessings keep your skin as healthy as they can get, safely and naturally.

Among other things listed as curing is:  Chicken Pox, Skin Fungus, Shingles,  Stretch Marks, Parasites,  Poison Ivy or Oak, Prostate Enlargement, Psoriasis, Ringworm, Varicose Veins, Wrinkles, Yeast Infections, Warts, Nausea,  Eczema, Cold sores, Hypertension, Heart Disease....the list goes on but check it out yourself.

I have been slathering it on my bumps  and blisters for about 24 hrs now and the itch is just about gone, barely there, at times its totally gone.   I'll keep you updated and report back in about a week and see how its going.......Best of luck to everyone in tolerating whatever it is we have
Psoriasis

I broke out severely with these very itchy, liquid filled  blisters for the first time in August. I talked to a pharmacist they told me it was poison ivy, oak or sumac so they told me to use ivy dry as benadryl topical wouldn't work, within hours of using the ivy dry the blisters got worse, I went to the doctors he said the same thing the pharmacist said and gave me steroids to take,  this worked it cleared it up.  Twice since then it has come back not as severe as the first time, but on both arms between the wrist and elbow not just the one spot as the first time and its not from the sun or heat as it is January in Michigan right now and it came back.  I think stress may bring it on for me but I have used benadryl which doesn't help the itch, I've used calamine lotion which seems to work somewhat.   While talking to my neighbor she told me to look on this site:  



http://www.coconut-oil-central.com/coconut-oil-poison-ivy.html

click onto this site then go to the side bar and click under cures and look at  all the things it states that coconut oil can cure.  Here is a few statements I copied and pasted from the site under cures:   coconut oil can cure and protect you from herpes.....Coconut oil jock itch? End the discomfort and frustration of this skin fungal infection of the groin with coconut oil (CNO), the world’s all natural, fungus-fighting tropical oil......Coconut oil eczema blessings keep your skin as healthy as they can get, safely and naturally.

Among other things listed as curing is:  Chicken Pox, Skin Fungus, Shingles,  Stretch Marks, Parasites,  Poison Ivy or Oak, Prostate Enlargement, Psoriasis, Ringworm, Varicose Veins, Wrinkles, Yeast Infections, Warts, Nausea,  Eczema, Cold sores, Hypertension, Heart Disease....the list goes on but check it out yourself.

I have been slathering it on my bumps  and blisters for about 24 hrs now and the itch is just about gone, barely there, at times its totally gone.   I'll keep you updated and report back in about a week and see how its going.......Best of luck to everyone in tolerating whatever it is we have
Psoriasis

Oops sorry didn't mean to post this twice

I am a 23 year old woman never had any issues with anything related to skin. When I got a bump on my wrist I thought it was just from my hair tie I put on my wrist at night.Then more smaller bumps developed around it, turning it into more of a horseshoe look. All on my wrist and backs of my hands, straight lines of tiny bumps. Itchy if i notice them. But I read something that it was a form of eczema, cause their on my feet now and front of my knees. But their not red unless i scratch them and then fluid comes out and they scab. I dont have insurance so im putting off going to the doctor but now their showing up on my back and other areas. Straight lines of tiny bumps. Perfect lines.... And other weird shapes... Dyshidrotic Eczema was the closest thing i could find to what i have but i havent seen anything about it occuring in straight lines.And I dont have a sweating problem... I dont think their spreading when I scratch them cause the next ones always show up in random places I hardly if ever touch on a daily basis, such as my feet lol......

The only problem we  have is that my husband thinks the coconut oil "'Butcher Boy" made by Columbus Oils, and Kosher approved cannot be publicly revealed as to whether it is made from old dried out moldy coconuts, called Copra or fresh live nuts.  They will NOT  tell me. He had an outbreak ALL OVER HIS BODY after using Butcher Boy brand coconut oil for cooking. His head is still weeping and little 'seeds' or bugs he calles them come from his pores.  

Put bandaids on it to cover them. They will be gone within a couple of weeks.
I am a nurse, but my son had this and he got treatment for it but the treatment scarred him. Finally, we covered him with round bandaids and they went away.

Good Luck!

I posted about my problem with this, a long time back and I mentioned that they were in straight rows.  I still get them and they itch like crazy until after the blisters have burst or until I pop them and treat them. I get them on the inside of my legs around the knees and below.  Here is what happens:   First I notice an itching on my leg in a place or two. It starts out as just little light red colored spots. It feels like pins sticking me at first and then it is itching.  Then pretty swiftly the skin is no longer smooth and these spots, that are in perfect parallel rows of three and sometimes four or more rows, having an average of four to six dots in a row, will rise and become blister dots having a clear liquid in them. It is at this point that they increase in size and very hateful itching.  After they pop from being rubbed against clothing or after I pop them, they still itch but the itching will start to decrease if they have been cleaned and treated with something..  They leave scars on my legs after they are healed up.  I sleep with my legs together and if the blisters pop while I am asleep, the clear liquid will transfers to the skin on the other leg and make another place of blisters in the same stage of development.
    I went to a dermotoligest and I allowed a biopsy to be done   (I now have a dime sized moon creator on my left leg that is a scar from now own)    on one of the blisters while it was at the stage of almost popping.  I was told that it was posion oak or poisin ivy or posion sumack.  I could not get a conformation on which one is was because they couldn't  tell.  Wasted my money because it maybe a posion but it is NOT oak or ivy or sumack.  All these years that I have had it I have not been in contact with those things. Oh, but they swore that it was a posion.   I never had these things until my family doctor put me on a blood pressure medication called " Lisinopril".   I may be wrong but it could have to do with the re-occurring itchy patches.  Maybe it is a posion that my body has produced because of this med.  A side affect that no doctor is willing to own up to and for unknown reasons I think.  
    Anyway,  I soak a paper towel in 91% isoproyl alcohol and soak the blisters for a while and then I rubb it hard into them and bust them.  Throwing away each paper towel and repeating this until all the liquid is gone from every blister.  I continue to clean with alcohol until I am ready to put either a cream, that the dermotoligists gave me or antibiotic onitment,  which is cheaper, on it and then cover it with a patch of something like bandaids or gauss.  They are  still bumpy and will itch some but they start to stop the itching as they start to get well.  I repeat this for three or four days and it starts to heal up.  Leaving little scars.
I belive that one day I will find out what it truely is.  I have read post here where everyone's dermotologist has given it a name or two but it all sounds vauge to me...
I have it, can't get rid of it,  it keeps on coming back, nobdy REALLY knows what it is, doctors seem to be unconcerned for the most part, and EVERYBODY'S got an answer.........Lord give me a break, please...
.......I hope that you have better luck at find out what it is than I have had...

Hi, my name is Scott, I also have these tiny, ichy, blister like bumps on my fingers that have just appeared recently... I thought it was poison oak or ivy but it just gets worse! I have no clue what to do... I am trying what Attillio said so thnx bro! I'll let u know how well it works

Hi, did you find out what it was? my family and i are suffering with what sounds the same and the doctors we have been to see are no help. It is a living night mare.

Taylor

Before we all jump to conclusions and scare the crap out of ourselves, it might be good to think of more simple and relieving answers to this issue. This thread had me thinking I had scabies for about 30 minutes when I thought of Heat Rash, which I suffered from much as a child, and came across this:

http://www.medicinenet.com/heat_rash/article.htm#

Most of the symptoms listed are listed as symptoms of heat rash, which is not a serious health risk unless a large area of sweat glands are blocked. Before you get rid of your cat, or start rubbing sulfur all over your body, stand in front of a fan and cool off for a few moments, keep your skin dry for a few hours, and see if the rash doesn't go away. One person even said that they get these blisters between June and September, the hottest months of the year. Make sure it isn't heat rash before you go spending hundreds on medical bills.

If you have Heat Rash it can be a serious problem if allowed to develop into a more serious condition, anybody with these symptoms needs to do their own research. I'm not sure if standing in front of a fan for a few hours makes it go away, but I've noticed that I often get these blisters on the side of my pointer finger from where I hold my thumb in my hand's resting position. My thumb rests on the side of my finger, and then after a few hours I get these blisters there. if i leave them alone they go away after a day or so, so just don't go overboard.

I am a 29 year old white male.    I have tiny skin colored bumps, some are filled with a clear liquid.  When I “pop” them with a nail clipper it oozes out clear.  I can flatten it and remove all the ooze, but 2-3 minutes later it refills to normal unflattened size.  The dried up ones itch less than the newly forming ones which itch like crazy and I am using all of my willpower to not itch them.  If I itch them and they burst, they hurt, dry up and crust over, though sometimes they just reestablish themselves.  I just know that when I scratch them it takes them longer to heal.  But the compromise is don’t scratch the intensely itchy spots on my hands for 4-5 days while they dry up and become a weird yellow color, and stay stiff until they flake off or scratch them and have them crust up and be painful but not itch, and then of course have scarring.

Ive tried several doctors and dermatologists and they are all useless.  I say this as I have my own degrees in chemistry and biology so I know how to research something and they constantly just write me off as “oh its eczema, oh its contact dermatitis, oh its poison ivy, oh its nothing… here is a cream” and then the cream helps a little but the problem always comes back.  I google until my eyes hurt from reading and find thousands of people have this same problem and no one knows what it is, what causes it, or how to cure it.  I even went so far as researching medical journals on pubmed but I could find no one actively studying this phenomena that we have.  That means very few people know what this stuff is and no one wants to do research on it or no one wants to fund research on it, so we the public are on our own for now.  Probably for many many decades as that’s how long drugs take to go through clinical trials.

So anyway, the first instance that I had of these clear tiny itchy bubbles was when I was 26, about 3 days after I used a tanning bed for the first time in my life.  Future trips to the tanning salon were followed with more of these bumps.  2 months after I last used a tanning bed this stuff went away.  I have tried to make correlations to sunlight and heat but until recently I was unable to link it.  Now it seems to me that after I am exposed to strong sunlight (or a tanning bed) it will take 2-3 days for these little bumps to show up.  They only show up on my hands, mostly on my fingertips, some on the back of my hands, once actually on a small dime sized patch on my penis, but thank god that only lasted about a week thanks to spraying it with that tinactin powder (makes me wonder why I never bothered spraying my hands with the same powder).  Well I noticed that the spot on my penis correlated perfectly with a spot on my finger where I hold the thing while I pee.  Until that ‘a-hah’ moment I did not believe that it could spread by scratching.  But I never had it on my junk before and the spot lined up perfectly with my finger.  So Im just saying, be careful.  Maybe other people cant catch it from you, but it seems that you may be able to transfer it to different parts of your body.

About 2 months back I went on a 7 day Caribbean cruise and during the last days of the cruise, after I was exposed to several days of Caribbean sunshine, these itchy bubbles showed up.  3 miserable weeks later the last of it crusted over and I was fine.  Then this past Saturday I went to an air show in NJ where I was outside on a sunny 75 degree day from 10am til 4pm, no umbrella, no hat, no common sense.  I applied SPF15 sunscreen once an hour and after getting home, I only had the slightest sunburn across half of my neck while my GF had various splotches of sunburn (so Im saying I applied lotsa sunscreen).  Well, like clockwork 2 days later my hands felt itchy and on day 3 these bumps showed up.  3 days later the original bumps stopped itching and were starting to dry and crust, then another batch of bumps showed up in random places all over my hands; some in patches/clusters, others as lone bumps.

What I am trying to get at is that, at least in my case, these breakouts are directly proportional to sun exposure.  I found in the past that when I used a tanning bed for just 3 minutes (a year after my first outbreak) that if I applied sunscreen generously to my hands, I would have no breakouts.  Then, being the scientist I am, I just had to test my theory, so the next time in the tanning bed (that would be the 4th time for the season over the course of 14 days) I didnt put sunscreen on my hands.  Lo and behold my hands broke out in these blistery things not 2 days later.

So I dont know if its gluten related or nickel related or stress related or whatever, but for me, strong sun exposure causes it (or artificial sun ie tanning bed).  I have definitely not been stressed for the past 2 weeks (its been quite nice actually) but I did sit in the sun during that air show and there seems to be quite the correlation.  I will continue using myself as a guinea pig and heavily spraying sunscreen (and reapplying it) during my average 4 hour golf outings from 10am to 2pm on sunny Saturday or Sunday afternoons.  I figure if I can go for a whole month or 2 without a breakout, I'll try one day with no sunscreen and see if it does break out, then I can confirm it.  My breakouts only occur between April and October, the sunniest times of the year so yeah.  Except my cruise was in March, but you get the picture.

I also found that heat does make it worse, so during a breakout I have to take luke warm showers and sleep in cold conditions (or else the itching is so bad I cannot sleep).  I cant say whether high temperature causes it or not, but heat makes it worse for me once I already have it.  Cortisone creams help with the itch but it doesnt last and they are very greasy, at least the one I have is.  Moisturizer seems to help at first, but then it just feels even more itchy like 10 minutes later.  I hope this tome helps some of you.  If I figure anything else out I will repost.

Hei fellow sufferers!
Have the same stuff going on here-havent slept for 4days now because of the itch and the uncomfortable situation:( But listen everybody I think I found a solution for my problem-at least it has helped me to not scratch myself for almost 5 hours now-will see what the night brings:)-Ok, so I took 2 Claritine tablets, a really long soap(cleaniq face) shower(cold) and Im spraying my blisters with nothing other then Cutasept feet-I know Your all like-wth, but belive me Im so desperet that I needed to try everything to get rid of this awful itch! Hope it will help you too! O and one more thing- Im not 100% but I think Its some kind of herpes, cause it spreads like a virus, so maybe u guys need to let it checked out, I know I will fur sure! Best of luck to everybody!

If you all read this article, i bet we could all find a food or something common among us that may be the cause of all our woes......just a thought.
http://todayhealth.today.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2012/05/27/11834403-9-nastiest-things-in-your-supermarket?lite&ocid=todmsnbc11

Well by the looks of all these statements there's something else going on...How can so many people from all walks of life have the same itchy problem....They say a plague will kill off the human race!!!Maybe it's starting.......

Ok so its a month after my original post.  Since then I have been out in super sunny conditions 3 times.  The first 2 times I genorously and repeatedly applied lots of SPF 30 sunscreen.  Conveniently enough, I had no itchy breakouts.  Then this past weekend I was at a fair of sorts and I was out in the sun from 11am to 4pm.  I applied sunscreen once and then didnt reapply because I was stupid (and mildy inebriated).  Well that was Saturday, then on Tuesday my hands felt a little itchy, Then on Wednesday My hands felt more itchy, but still no bumps.  Now today, Thursday morning, I have the itchy bumps begining to form.  So its settled, If I go out in the sun and apply tons of sunscreen repeatedly, im ok and I dont break out.  If I go out in the strong sun and I dont properly protect my skin, I get a breakout of itchy bump things on my hand.

If anyone else has found this correlation, please post something and let me know Im not loosing my mind.  To me my experience sounds like a well tested experiment resulting in a direct cause and effect.  But does anyone get these bumps but they are never in direct sunlight?

I also have simalar symptoms, mine didn't start on my legs or arms but on the left side of my pelvic bone, the they stated appearing on my belly around my belly button and then to my hands. After about 2-3 weeks of this ive tried using skin creams and it don't seem like there helping. I woke up this morning and realized that they spread to my privates... this has gone to far idk what to do cause like a lot of people I don't have any kind of insurance and I need to figure something out asap. If anyone went to the Dr and was able to treat it can you let me know what they said im willing to try anything at this point as long as its not to crazy.

Well, I thought I would post what happened to me in case it could help someone. I have never had a skin problem and when I moved to France (Bordeaux) I started to experience itchy skin - small pimples. I thought nothing of it but it got worse, much worse, so bad I ended up in the ER at the local hospital. The doctor gave me pills and cream - had a blood test which was negative. It wasn't getting better so I visited a physician who prescribe penicillin, and cream. The penicillin clear up the infested areas very quickly but I still had a same problem. I then visited our local Dermatologist (had to wait three weeks for an appointment) he prescribed pills, Diprosone cream  and a lotion called Excipial Pruri lotion which I applied all over my body after showering. He also order a full blood test which was also negative. This treatment did help. But the big surprise was when I started to drink two tablespoons of Apple cider vinegar (must be non-pasteurized - Braggs is good) in half a glass of water first thing in the morning and last thing at night - try not to drink or eat a good half hour after. This cleared my problem immediately though I still zap the odd itchy spot with the cream but I am now itchy-free and my skin is back to normal. Now I;m not saying this is right for you but you may want to ask your doctor if you can give it a try. I was told this by a health guru. Good luck, Robert    

I have found that cortisone type anti-itch creams make mine worse, but rubbing alcohol applied with a clean q-tip dries them up almost miraculously!  There is a cream that my doctor prescribed for me, and it works really well, but of course my insurance doesn't cover that particular brand so it's really expensive, and there is no generic.  When I ran out of the cream and another crop popped up, I was desperate and grabbed the alcohol to see if it would dry them up (alcohol works great for poison oak, too, BTW!).  Voila!  The bumps were history in less than 24 hours!  There is a crop on my calves right now that is being treated with rubbing alcohol as we speak.  

I agree. I have had this annoying issue for a long time. All started with those tiny itchy blisters. I have seen many doctors/ dermatologists, many theories. This is the first I have heard of glutin intolerance. I will try that one. I was at the point that I would try anything. It has gotten better, but the last diagnosis I had from Dr was due to my asthma. My mother had hay fever and my son has eczema, apparently all related. And he said there's not much you can do but use steroid creams if it gets too bad. But at the beginning stage, wash wash wash, then put a band aid over to "suffocate" them/ dry them out. He says if they can breath, they will spread. This has lessened outbreaks by
80 o/o. Still get occasional bump, but after I put a banaid over it, usually gone in couple days. But I will say, when it was bad, I had 100's, and a bandaid wasn't going to work. I ended up getting biopsies, steriod injections, steroid creams, lots of crying, no sleep, no answers from doctors, was out of work for 3 months. Good luck to everyone.

Here is a remedy to try and relieve the itching and help the blisters heal. I don't know if it's ok to mention a brand but I will. Basically clay (which comes in a fine powder) can be mixed with water and formed into a paste. Clay is fantastic for healing skin irritations and soothing itch. I recommend 'Living Clay' which you can google online. Another great site to look up remedies is ****.com. I do not know what these blisters are but it could be diet, chemical irritation, who really knows. My personal recommendation is to start by cleaning up the best you can. Don't eat genetically modified foods (only guarantee is to eat organic) and dump all the chemical products you use (i use only baking soda and vinegar to scrub and disinfect). Your personal care products should not contain chemicals (mine don't). See a naturopath to rule out food allergies or experiment with cutting out meat/dairy/gluten. All this has worked for me. If nothing else, get the clay. Nothing works faster to eliminate itch and assist in the healing process. You can spread the wet clay paste on you blisters (personally I break the blisters first) and let the clay dry then rinse off. The clay will absorb the crap in the blisters. You can also keep the clay on longet but spritz with water to keep the clay moist. It worked for me. Best of luck to all of you.

I thought I'd add a few more comments on the clay:
Clay has been used by indigenous populations with access to clay for medicinal purposes. Clay is antiviral, anti fungal and is also used to pull toxins from the body. You can take clay baths, ingest clay internally (1 tsp mixed with water), and make a paste to soothe and heal the skin. There are many sources of clay and you need to research and be careful of the brand of clay you buy. Be sure to buy clay that is mined below surface versus clay that is located on the surface and exposed to weather/contaminants. It is quite sad that such a wonderful medicinal substance is rare knowledge in modern times. We think of clay as childrens art supply and nothing more. I recommended a brand in my post above but and reputable producer of 'edible clay' would be good.

A few more thoughts: Many skin conditions are caused by nutrient deficiencies. For those diagnosed with psoriasis etc. I recommend Cold pressed hemp seed oil (organic only, packaged in dark bottle, and kept refrigerated by the store). For slow healing I recommend adding vitamin D and zinc. The ONLY real healthy source of vitamin D that I trust is the vitamin D that your body produces. This means at least 20-30 minutes of direct sunshine on skin (arms and legs are sufficient) with NO sunscreen (sunscreen blocks vitamin D production). Forget the vitamin D pills from fish oil - talk about pouring heavy metals into your body. For the zinc, take only 'whole food' zinc supplements. This means whole foods high in zinc are pulverized and placed in capsules. Finally, most Americans have problems with Magnesium deficiency. A good way to get magnesium is transdermally thru the skin (i use 'ancient minerals' brand). You simple rub the oil on the tops of your feet and let it soak in. Finally, for those that have shingles...avoid peanuts and chocolate. Take lysine supplements. Again, the clay paste placed on broken blisters will feel wonderful. Clay does not burn or sting. I promise you will feel better. If any of decide to go the clay route on your blisters,  please post back here and let me know if it worked for you.

ur story is the only one on here that matches mine perfectly. have the bumps but not red, some filled some not, itchy, spreads to friends, docs told me it was scabies, treated me like 6 months ago and its back. told me its bedbugs so i litterally threw out everything in my house and moved and got all new things, that didnt help. no bedbugs. no bugs of any kind, at least not visible ones im kinda ocd about cleaning even more so now. ive also been drinking soy and been close to gluten free for most of my life, i perfer the more natural stuff, so not sure if that would be it. all i know is this is terrible and these doctors who just point a finger in a medical book and say "yep this is what u have" is really starting to make me mad. why cant anyone figure this out!?

     Finally A group of people who won't tell me I'm crazy... =)
     Let me begin by saying, I am a former model - now a fulfilled, happy, stay-at-home wife and mother. Our family wants for nothing - I do not live in a stressful environment. I have regular visits with my internist, massage therapist & recently, chiropractor and acupuncturist.
     After a car accident in July, 2007, I was put on a host of medications for pain and anxiety - I believe these are what exaccerbated whatever this itchy beast inside of me is. All I know is, the beast is awake and never sleeps. My itchy red bumps came in straight lines on my fingers at first - now 5 years later, they are random itchy bumps, some large, some small - mainly on tops of hands and forearms, but also appear inexplicably on backs of knees, back, scalp, legs, etc. There are NO rhyme or reason to them.
    I agree with those who believe something is known about this within the medical community and we are not being told. I have been to dermatologists who get downright defensive when I even imply what it might be and am then I'm accused of being a "picker" - they are defensive because they have no answers and the treatments they've given - (steroids, gentamicin, hydrocortizone, unscented EVERYTHING, etc.) DON'T WORK! The last straw for me was when they attempted to "scare me out of the office" by suggesting cutting a dime-sized biopsy of skin off the top of my ring finger - believe me, if I thought they'd have helped me, I would have allowed it, but they don't know what the heck they're doing to this point, so how on earth could I say yes?
     I've NEVER had anything like this nor has anyone in my family - it's embarrassing and dehumanizing and I would take ANYTHING regardless of the side effects, if it would MAKE IT GO AWAY. I have been off ALL medications for over 2 years now, but this awful skin affliction remains. I reckon the damage is done - due to the ill effects of the pain and anti-anxiety meds. I too have tried all sorts of OTC and home remedies, but nothing quells it for long. It is brought on randomly by stress, anxiety, certain foods/ingredients, sun - this is why other people have a tendency to dismiss it as crazy - there seems to be no rhyme or reason to this condition.
     I have begun seeking treatment from a local herbal specialist who has a doctorate in pharmacology (because she's an herbalist, she was actually forced by law to get her doctorate - thank the FDA for that). I am in the proceess of becoming a certified herbalist myself and I will continue to share my progress and any new developments, positive and negative as they arise.
      Although difficult at times, I try and keep this all in perspective and remain grateful for life's miracles in spite of my once-beautiful, now-stricken hands and arms and itching.....let's face it, in this world, people can be downright cruel when it comes to appearances and you can't hide your hands from the world. I leave you with the eternal words of Tom Hanks in Castaway; =)

  "And I know what I have to do now. I gotta keep breathing. Because tomorrow, the sun WILL rise. Who knows what the tide could bring?"

This problem had come to me and my husband for a several times and not knowing what to do..taking medications and other home made herbal remedy but nothing works.. except one day my grandma told me to stop eating this foods check list below:

-chicken (including chicken flavored food on noodles, soup, gravy, and even food enhancer which usually contains chicken fats)
-egg (all kinds of egg)
-tomatoes so try to avoid spaghetti, lasagna and other pasta with tomato sauce even canned sardines
-all fish with no scales
-watermelon
-seafood like shrimp,squid,crabs and almost all kind of seashell
-fish sauce, oyster sauce, shrimp paste and even dried fish

Sacrifice a little there still lot of food we can enjoy all beef,pork and fish with scales products and still lots of fruits and vegetables.
This will help a lot,try it for a week and see for yourself.
Better to continue so it will be long gone.

i recently visited houston, and during my stay, i went swimming in the pool at the hotel. i relaxed and had my arms on the coping of the pool, my back on the inside wall of the pool. the next day i noticed small bumps on my under arm and back. they itched so bad i could barely stand it. i tried calamine lotion, benedryl, cortizone creme, anti-bacterial soap and alcohol wipes. so far, nothing has helped. it feels identical to poison ivy/poison oak, but i was nowhere near either of the two. at first i assumed chlorine allergy, or maybe the chlorine was residual on the coping where they had walked around the parimeter of the pool during treatment, but its been 5 days since, and its only spreading worse. looks like small ant bites, that form a small head of puss. noticed a small area of four spots on my forehead, but mostly is on my arms, hands, and back. im afraid to hug my wife, or pick up my daughter, as i dont know if its contageous. this *****! also, i was under a great deal of stress, so my wife thinks its stress related, but im just not sure.

still hasnt subsided. i took a salt bath, and that helped with the itch for about 12 hours. now the itch is back. my wife thinks its hives related to stress, which i WAS under a enormous amount of. im not under any stress CURRENTLY, but the rash has not gone away. new spots keep popping up too. i hate this.  

I started getting the itchy bumps on my legs after being put on anxiety medicine too.  Please let me know if you come up with anything at all.  I have suffered for almost 9 years with this skin problem.  It has caused so much discomfort and inconvenience in my life that I would do just about anything to make it go away.  Please keep me posted if you come up with any answers!

Loomis13, thanks so much for the information and research.  I appreciate the info regarding the sunlight and the contact spreading to yourself.  I am a filipina female, 37 years old.   I have the tiny blistery itchy bumps all over the back of my hands too.  I've had it for the past 3 years.  I have eczema, it runs in my family.  I have had dry scaly patches on various parts of the body my whole life, but until 3 years ago, I never had anything like these little watery itchy bumps on my hands.  They showed up suddenly  and have not gone away.  I know that they definitely get worse during stressful times.  They immediately start itching.  They do not go away on their own.  When using doctor prescribed prednisone a few times, they have disappeared for a few weeks, but they always return and seem to be permanent.  Topical creams don't help (clobetasol, triamcinolone, hylatopic plus).  I've tried suffocating them with bandaids, have tried hydrogen peroxide, have tried micatin fungal spray, have soaked them in apple cider vinegar.   I cannot determine if mine gets worse with sunlight, but I'll take precautions.  Also, I will be careful about contact.  I have allergies and am always sneezing and blowing my nose.  My nose recently dried out and developed cracks inside my nostrils.  The cracks won't heal no matter what I try and the dry, flaky skin on my nose seems to keep getting worse and spreading.  I've wondered if it developed from contact with my hands.  I've most recently gone to the doctor to get tested for systemic yeast overgrowth.  The symptoms seem to correlate with what I have.  Systemic yeast overgrowth is something that's caused from within and is exacerbated by antibiotics and steroids (which I've had plenty of during my lifetime).  I find out the lab results in a few weeks and can't wait.  If that's what it is, at least I'll have an idea of how to counter it.  The skin itchy skin issue makes me feel hopeless at times.  The best anti-itch treatment I've found is meditation.  I've tried benadryl and stronger medications to keep the itching at bay, but they don't help much.  Ice helps to numb the itching when I can't ignore it.  I have food allergies (including gluten) and have steered clear from them for 10 months+ at a time.  I get frustrated when I don't see any improvement.  I'm still researching the web, hoping to find someone who found a cure.  Oh, my aunt has a skin condition on her hands just like mine.  After also trying just about everything, hers was cured/relieved by Humira.  She has rhumatoid arthritis and I guess one of the autoimmune symptoms is also the hand skin issue.  If I find anything that relieves/cures my condition, I'll post again.  Good luck to everyone!

2 years ago...I was drawn to this community of posts regarding rashes because I too broke out with a  severe painful rash at the tail end of my 7day Caribbean Cruise.
After some oral medication and skin cream, prescribed by my dermatologist, I found some mild relief.
But the best thing that I did to prevent or to make sure that it did not come back was to protect my skin.
I live in Florida and I found myself wearing 3/4 or sometimes long sleeved light shirts if I knew that I would be exposed to the outdoor sun for greater than 2 hours. I also, maintained my house very very cool.
And when my arms itched or if I even suspected that the rash was coming back....I took lukewarm to cool showers. (My skin seemed to like the colder water)

I have been doing this for 2 years now and it seems to keep the bumps at bay. Don't get me wrong....they are there....lingering....and I can barely see them when I am fine.
But if I am too long in the sun.....they will come out to remind me that I should not be out in the sun and if they start to itch, then I know I'm in trouble!!
This was recently confirmed to me 2x this year....
#1 Last month I went to a Football game and I didnt think about protecting my skin...was more concerned about what t-shirt I was going to wear to cheer the team with!
By the 4th quarter my arms were red and itching! And my Rash was on fire!
Went home and took a cool shower and put cold compresses on my arms/hands. It seemed to help....after a week it was gone.

#2 I went on another 7 day Caribbean cruise 2 weeks ago (& YES Hurricane Sandy decided to go with us!!)
Despite the rough seas, and the ship rocking us to sleep 24/7,  it was a great cruise and we visited all of our destinations. We did excursion tours at every port and most were outdoors. Of course I was too busy having a good time to protect my skin.
By the end of the cruise, my symptoms were back....red itchy painful bumps on both arms...mainly in groups of bumps...dry skin.
But thankfully I knew what to do and the bumps never formed the liquid inside and the itchiness was not severely painful as in the past.

I am wearing longer sleeves in the Florida sun, I am showering with cooler water. Drinking more water as I noticed dehydration makes my rash angry.
My skin is now very dry and almost looks like it wants to peel....but not quite. Putting lotion on it daily makes it worse so I put Eucerin on my arms 1x/week and it works.

2 years ago...this was the worst thing ever...now, its a pain, but I treat it like an ALLERGY and so I practice prevention...it not gone but it helps.

Also please note*** I found out that some of my over the counter medicines and some perscriptions have a very very teeny tiny warning that says avoid prolonged exposure to the sun!! Some interaction may trigger Sun Poisoning/Heat Rash.
My suggestion to EVERYONE is to GOOGLE ALL of your medicines and vitamins/supplements for interaction to prolonged sunlight. (or talk to your doctors/pharmacists about it!)
Good Luck to all of you!
:-)

This is my fourth time with this rash it is horrible and I don't want to even get naked in front if my boyfriend over it.it started the summer before last.it was tiny dots that itched and burned this time its worse than ever it is on my arms my armpits,torso,on the labia and thighs Dr told me it was contact dermatitis creams and everything else does not work.going to the Tanner after a month it goes away.but the intensity of the itching is horrible and they are the size if a qtip end red scabbed over I use only dial soap and perfume and dye free detergents.natural shampoo argan oil.what is this its horrible its even on my neck this time

scabies?  IF they are in rows and/ or have pencil marks between them, check and see if it could be scabies. You need nix or something that will get rid of them, and you will itch for some time after. But get it checked first. It seems odd your whole family gets it -- if they do, you are spreading it to each other.

I had the same type blistered skin.  Had a surgeon tell me that there are two types of infection - bacterial and fungal.  I finally, after 4 years of suffering and trying everything the Dermatologist, Allergist, and family Doctor gave me to use, tried an anti-fungal cream.  Put it on, covered with a bandage and left it for a day.  Immediately, the itching stopped!  It has been about 10 months now, and have only had one flair-up since, which was quickly healed.  The scarred skin has faded and it is so great to not have that anymore!   Good Luck!

I have had itchy insane burning rash for three months now . No one could tell me what it was. Found a site that may offer you some help. Look up dermatitis herpetaformis. It's related to celiac. I've been gluten free  for a week and itching has subsided quite a bit. Still feels Like bugs though. Good luck

I have had itchy insane burning rash for three months now . No one could tell me what it was. Found a site that may offer you some help. Look up dermatitis herpetaformis. It's related to celiac. I've been gluten free  for a week and itching has subsided quite a bit. Still feels Like bugs though. Good luck

welli had red itchy spots on arms legs for about 6months being to doctors blood test  creams and medications but not worked ,then i found sone one with a cure through prayer and now week later all gone margaret

Check out pustular psoriasis.

Was at the doc and well he told me its dermatitis and well I did eat something and I must stay away from meat,fish,nuts,milk,cheese,etc until i found out what I'm allergic 2,he gave me the Cortisone injection,talfast and prednisones,its working,burning,redness,itching,blister is going away slowly but surely,HapPY!!but stay out of the sun while you on treatment!

Hey! Did you ever find an answer for this?

I recently went to Bolivia/Peru and got a bug bites on my wrists. They turned into blisters and popped. When I got back home I went to get them checked out cus they became infected and find out there was a bit of mrsa in them. I went on septra and Bactroban. The bites were pretty itchy and reddened.

Then I started getting little vesicles (clear blisters with serous fluid) all over. I was referred to infectious diseases. I tried baths, chlorohexadine wash, and dressed my wounds with silver dressings, all while taking my septra. The mrsa was gone from my wounds but I kept getting the vesicles everywhere and they're soo itchy. All my blood work was normal.

I'm going to be seeing a dermatologist pretty soon. I'm now gonna try doxycycline which also can be used for acne to see if it will help. And I use the salicyclic acid for my vesicles. Seems to dry them out some.

Let me know your progress please!!! I've had this now for about a month and its driving me nuts.

Hey! Did you ever find an answer for this?

I recently went to Bolivia/Peru and got a bug bites on my wrists. They turned into blisters and popped. When I got back home I went to get them checked out cus they became infected and find out there was a bit of mrsa in them. I went on septra and Bactroban. The bites were pretty itchy and reddened.

Then I started getting little vesicles (clear blisters with serous fluid) all over. I was referred to infectious diseases. I tried baths, chlorohexadine wash, and dressed my wounds with silver dressings, all while taking my septra. The mrsa was gone from my wounds but I kept getting the vesicles everywhere and they're soo itchy. All my blood work was normal.

I'm going to be seeing a dermatologist pretty soon. I'm now gonna try doxycycline which also can be used for acne to see if it will help. And I use the salicyclic acid for my vesicles. Seems to dry them out some.

Let me know your progress please!!! I've had this now for about a month and its driving me nuts.

opps spelled ringworm wrong, but i always do. No "W".

I have ringworm incognito, which eventually morphs into everything in the book under the heading of: "Skin rash". I have had it for over a month. The doctor's treatment is no better than mine. Itis now starting to head for Leprosy. No kidding.

The fluid that comes out of the tiny blisters is sticky and hardens into a hard crust. This is the creature protecting itself from the stuff we put on our skin. It sometimes seems to go away if you keep it dry dry dry, but it will come back.

The "weeping" of the rash, i believe, means infection, and especially if the rash gets red and also if there is swelling. Infection can be dangerous.

Black walnut drops at Wegmans or any health food store are really good. You can also get the capsules.

Today i tried putting a Sulfa tablet in the little blender; it turned to powder very nicely; i put it on my hands and arms, which are nearly raw; it did string, but the swelling really went down fast.

Remember: donot put cortisone/steroid on ringworm or youwill get ringworm incognito.

I find oils and grease spread the rash, as well as that fluid that comes out of the blisters. I am going to start using non-oil skin lotion etc. on my skin because itis sooooo dry, and why this has happened in the first place.

I forgot and just had some peppermint tea which counteracts the black walnut, and now i am starting to itch again.

I have been having something similar to many of you.  Mine started about 4 weeks ago with little raised blisters around my ankles that itched like crazy at night and when first getting out of bed.    At first I thought they were hives.  I have been experiencing alot of stress, lately, so I attributed it to that, rather than an allergic reaction.  They started spreading up my legs to my knees.  I took oatmeal baths to help with the itching.  The first one I took, I ran the water a little on the hot side.  As soon as I stepped into the tub, the hives/blisters immediately began to swell and spread up my legs.  So, mine are definitely made worse by heat.  I concluded that maybe that is why it is worse at night, when my legs are under the covers and get warm.  Soon, the blisters started on my wrists and spread up to my elbows.

In the past 7-8 months I have had severe depression and have just started having severe anxiety attacks for the first time in my life.  (I'm 46.)  My mental state has been so severe that I was unable to work for several months, which has put us under alot of financial stress.  I have been on 4 different anti-depressants and finally found one that works, so my depression is better.  I still have the anxiety, but nothing like when I was having 6 - 10 attacks a week.  Now I might have 2 - 3.  I am also taking Klonipin (klonopin) for anxiety.  (I noticed some other people mentioned a possible link to anti-anxiety meds?)  I have returned to work, and that has been stressful being busy and trying to catch up financially.

In January, I had Shingles.  My doctor attributed it to all of the stress I have been under and a weakened immune system.  When these blisters started showing up, I thought maybe it was a recurrance of the Shingles, but they did not feel or look the same.  When I had Shingles, it was (and usually is) on just one side of my body and ran in rows along the nerve path, which is what Shingles usually do.  With the blisters, I didn't have the intense pain that I had with Shingles, just itching.  But, I wonder if this condition might somehow be related to Shingles and/or having a weakened immune system?

After about 2 weeks, I went to my doctor.  The blisters were pretty much gone, but I had scabs all over from the itching.  Some were infected so he gave me an antibiotic.  He looked at my sores and said he thought it was scabies or bed bugs.  However, one of the "signs" of scabies is a black dot in the middle of the blister and having them between your fingers.  I didn't have either one of those things.  I told him I had not stayed in a hotel or any bed other than my own for a long time, and that my husband sleeps in the same bed I do, and he does not have the blisters.  So, he basically didn't have an answer to me except that it was probably the stress or some kind of allergic reaction to something I was coming into contact with, and to take Benadryl.

Two days later, (a Saturday), the blisters were back with a vengeance.  Even the places that had scabbed over were developing new blisters underneath the scabs.  My doctor's office was closed, so when I called the doctor on call, he said to go to the ER.  The ER doctor looked at my sores and said "It's scabies."  Again, I went over the signs of scabies and bed bugs with her, and the fact that my husband didn't have it, and she dropped that diagnosis.  The ER doc finally agreed that it might just be stress that was causing the hives, or some kind of allergic relation to something I was coming into contact with.  She prescribed a Prednisone dose pack - where they start you on a high dose and then lower the dosage day by day for 5 or 6 days.  She also told me to increase my anti-anxiety meds - to take one in the morning as well as at bedtime, to try to keep my stress and anxiety level down.  After 2 - 3 days on the dose pack, double doses of Klonipin (klonopin), many cool oatmeal baths, oral Benadryl every 4 hours and calamine lotion, the blisters and itching finally started to go away.  (And let me tell you, I was a zombie, as both the Klonipin (klonopin) and Benadryl make you sleepy, and I was taking them all day long.)

I saw my psychiatrist the next week and he said that it was very likely caused by my stress and anxiety and that he has seen other patients have the same thing.  He agreed with the ER doc that I should stay on the double dose of my anti-anxiety meds to keep my stress and anxiety in check.

About 10 days after I finished the Prednisone, the blisters came back.  This time, they spread from my ankles to my hips and from my wrists to my shoulders, and a new patch on my neck and up to my chin and side of my face.  Back to my doctor.  He still didn't know what it was - - he is guessing more allergic reaction than stress-induced.  He prescribed a longer regimen of Prednisone.  Yesterday, I had been on the highest dose for 5 days and was supposed to decrease the dosage, but I still did not have any relief from the blisters like I had with the dose pack after a few days.  Called the doc back and he said to stay on the higher dose for a few more days and go see a dermatologist, because he was out of ideas.

So, that's where I'm at.  I feel like the Prednisone is finally working, I don't have any new blisters, just scabbed over ones.  I have some itching, but I'm still taking Benadryl and using calamine lotion, and shopping for a good Dermatologist.

I was talking to a friend about it today and she said it sounded like something her husband had been having for years.  His recurs on his arms and legs every spring.  He had tried everything, eliminating different things from his diet, using hypo-allergenic laundry soap, etc., and nothing ever helped.  Finally, he saw a dermatologist who gave him an accurate disgnosis:  Polymophous Light Eruption, "an itchy rash caused by sun exposure in people who have developed a sensitivity to sunlight (photosensitivity). The rash usually appears as red, tiny bumps or slightly raised patches of skin.  Polymorphous light eruption occurs most often during spring and early summer when a person's exposure to sunlight increases. Repeat episodes are less likely as the summer progresses, but polymorphous light eruption often recurs each year after the first incident."  This is from a Mayo Clinic article at this link:  http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/polymorphous-light-eruption/DS00911   It goes on to say that some people might experience it in the winter if they travel to tropical locations where their exposure to UV rays, etc. would be higher than normal during the winter.  (I noticed many of you mentioning your outbreaks had happened following trips to Florida or the Caribbean.  Any way, now that they KNOW what it is, her husband goes to the dermatologist every Spring and he gives him either the steriod dose-pack or an injection of steriod.  She says that this decreases his outbreaks measurably while is skin is adjusting to the summer's increased sunlight.  The doctor also told him to keep the skin very moisturized - he is supposed to apply lotion every day after showering.

So, I'm not sure that this is what I have - - we haven't had much increased sunlight yet here in the Upper Midwest, and my ankles definitely haven't been exposed to the sun, but it sounds like it might be an answer to what many of you are saying your symptoms are.  (At least there's ONE doctor out there who knows what's going on!)  Hope this helps!

I have been experiencing the same thing as all of you in this thread.  It seems no one has an answer as to what is causing the nasty little itch.

Has anyone thought about blood types?  A shot in the dark but what the heck.  I am A positive.

I have been having the same outbreaks that you are referring to.  I have been tested for celiacs and it came back negative.  One thing that puzzles me, I was on a pile of steroids during a terrible outbreak and it did nothing.

Any thoughts?

Thanks in advance