THE rash

Oh man, it is raining in Michigan today. The grip of winter is loosing its hold for a few days. That is good news indeed for most of us in this area. Just a question for your all today. One of the worst sides for me (12/26) has been the insatiable rash. It is unrelenting in its ability to itch and drive me crazy. I have several open areas on my arms, legs and back. I developed THE rash at week 4. 1% hydrocortisone cream seems to be the answer in decreasing the inflammation, thus decreasing the itch. Aveeno is a pain, a humidifier added to the household really didn't help and benadryl increases the diuretic effect of the combo tx which compounds the dehydration.

The question is, have any of you tried the nonsteroidal prescription creams such as Protopic or Eladil? I think that is the correct spelling of the last one. Been seeing it advertised on TV over the past month or so. I was wondering how they worked for you. I hate using steroids of any kind. As a nurse I know they are a necessary adjunct to treatments of several diseases. I think applying this stuff over a large body area twice a day for several days is not good.

There I go again. Wordy as hell. Thanks in advance for any advice.

The Gaffer Dale

[The gaffer]

Hey Peebee, it is lazyness. Never really gave Aveeno a fair shake. Tried it 4 or 5 times without relief of the itch. Could it be that Aveeno works better over a period of time? Does one need soaking 2xs a day for a few days in a row?

The Gaffer

[layla]

I've had (and have) a couple different rashed while on tx. One looked very different and pops up now and again. My GP gave me a cortisone prescription with some antifungal tx in it. He did test for fungus but it was negative, nevertheless it looked like a fungus type rash so we tried the cream since nothing else semed to work. Worked like a charm for me. I use aveeno too becasue so many people recommend it but I can't really tell any difference from the vaseline intensice care I was using. It seems different for everyone. I did find using cream multiple times a day helped with skin dryness but not the itching. I hope you find something that helps you. LL

[honey1616]

Is everyone using a humidifier in their bedroom every night?  I'm finding that my skin is dry but I really feel it could be alot worse if I wasn't using the humifier.

[CARUU]

Yep, I use a humidifier (and Aveeno skin oil, body wash, hydrocortisone cream for rash spots).  I also have a tube of Vit E lip gloss that is real nice.  Maybe doing tx in the winter wasn't such a good idea, especially in Colorado!  But I'm glad to be getting down to the last few weeks now!

[oldhippiechick67]

Hi there everyone.  I use the humidifier, partly cuz of dryness, and also to help drown out the dang ringing in my ears!!  I am on week 33/34 and my energy level seems to be pretty good (with the Procrit and Neupogen helping I believe) but I am still dizzy.  Got my stinkin taxes done, using Turbo Tax, my hubby said the guys at work said "Even a monkey could use it, its SOOOO easy", well they dont know that this monkey wants to get every dang deduction and I thought, I really did, that we had to have spent over 7.5% of our AGI on medical stuff, but noooo, so we get zilch for that.  So I was spending hrs and hrs adding up the stupid copays and so forth, for nuthin.  Whadda dork I am.  Hope you all are okay, Good to see some of the oldies again!  Hugs, OHC

[LvdByGod]

hey ya all, i think a trip to the dermatologist may be in order for a few of you. several skin type issues and rashes etc...are normal with tx. but, do the GI's really care about/know about the "surface" of things or do they know what is best and how to appropriatly diagnose and treat these skin type problems? just wondering. it's great to go to the specialists if possible.

my cat is an example,his vet didn't know what was wrong with him. he was blistering on all his feet and back of legs and getting blisters on his lips and head. they refered me to a derm specialist who told me he has feline einosophilic granulamatos disease, which is giant white blood cells attacking areas.  o.k. interestingly, the first thing tried was oral interferon. it did not work at all, it was meant to boost his immune system. well i found out through working with them that changing his diet worked best for him. he hardly has any breakouts at all anymore. when he does he must bring them under controll a soon as they begin and they do it with prednisolone or prednisone. thanks to them my little simba, my baby is beautiful again.

[raheem]

I've been using Valisone lotion for an itchy scalp-works well.  I use Valisone cream on the red spots and itch spots on my body-works well.  I've been cutting down on the hot water in the shower. That was really making me light up like a christmas tree and turned the drying off into an itching session!

[WhataLife]

Hello all,
The rash started for me around week 24.  Big, red blotchy areas coupled with an insatiable itch.  At first I thought it was injection site irritation but then it started to spread everywhere.  Next came dry scaley areas.  Then, finally, there were patches of what looked like pimples.  It all itched like crazy.  I tried all of the OTC remedies, unscented soap, hydrocortisone cream, humidifier, vitamin E, antihistimines i.e. Claritin, Benedryl, and Hydroxizine pills.  Finally went to a dermatologist because the rash was so intense that I was having difficulty finding usable injection sites.  The skin doc prescribed Triamcinolone cream (Daytime) and Triamcinolone ointment (Nights).  It was a miracle in a jar.  Within 2 days it had knocked back the rash by at least 50%.  By the end of a week there was hardly any rash at all.  I'm now on week 32 and Triamcinolone is still working.  The rash still wants to come back, its always trying but 2-4 applications per day keep it in check.  Hope this helps.

[DownThisRoad]

Ah yeah.............the itch..........the rash.  Its just like a bad dream, huh.  I've tried everything for the past 10 weeks now.  I finally broke down and called my GI and said 'oh nothing is helping and please give me something that will help' (why didn't I do this 10 weeks ago and save my skin a little?).

Aveeno products helped for a quick fix, but really didn't help to curb this itch actually got worse wasn't stopping the itch.  Tried some cortizone cream.  Again helped for a couple of days, almost seems to get worse and come back in full force. did all the over the counter anti itch creams, didn't help.

I started using the Elidel cream a couple of weeks ago.  So far, this is really helping and my itch isn't as bad and seems as though my skin is having an extra minute to heal and stay quiet now.  I've even had a couple of days in a row that I didn't itch, itch and itch.  My GI also prescribed a pill called hydroxyzine HCL 25mg (generic for Atarax).  Maybe its the pill, maybe its the Elidel; or combination of both.  I just know this new regime is working.

[thanbey]

I have done some research on skin problems (treatment related and not treatment related)

I found some research done in Canada that found that there are HCV related skin infections. It was published last year and might be of interest to your doctors (gastros, heps, and others) if you are having some problems. you can find it here:

http://www.hcop.org/hcvinfo/articles/index.cfm?articleid=137

Treatment can bring on autoimmune problems, like psoriasis, so it is important to have your doctor, a dermatologist preferred, have a look.

Since most of us, including me, don't know a minor skin rash from a more serious one, I put some info on those topics up, also with links to more information. My goal is to organize information in a easy-to-reference manner. Submissions are welcome.

If nobody objects, I will add some of the suggestions I have been reading here about products you have found useful.

I hope this helps,

thanbey

www.hcop.org

http://www.hcop.org/hcvinfo/category/index.cfm?categoryid=37