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Avatar universal

itching

Terrible itching, nothing seems to work, and pretty aggressive skin rash, thighs, arms, and a little on the butt.
Went to the Dr., just gave me a subscription, but not too much info.

Been using ectosone cream, Cetaphil  moisturizing lotion, slightly  warm baths with a skin sensitive soap for just over two days only, but as of yet , no improvement.
Trouble sleeping with the itching as well.

Is it a bit too early to tell if it's working, or does it take time?

Anyone's advice who have gone through this would be greatly appreciated.

Enjoy your day.

Thanks,
Terry
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Avatar universal
I had over 8 weeks of horrible continuous itching near the end of my 12 weeks on incivek.  I tried medications, lotions, etc. and nothing seemed to help.

The only thing that did help was ice and cold packs.  Someone else on the forum suggested it,  and at the point that I was ready to carve my skin off, I tried it and it helped a lot.

Lying on cold packs is not comfortable, but it is a lot better then the itch.  For me the worst area of itch seemed to move from place to place, so I just had several cold gel packs and would move them around onto the worst itch areas.  It would stop the worst of the itch for a while, so I was continuously moving them around.  But I was really thankful it helped.

Helpful - 0
190885 tn?1333025891
nothing worked for me....you might just have to hang in there
Helpful - 0
Avatar universal
   I found relief, from the prescription anti-itch pill, hydroxyzine (aka Atarax)
I had to take it very regularly, in order for my rash to clear up, and I also tried to avoid the sun. But I was on Triple Tx with Victrelis, and the Incivek rash can be much worse. I'm glad you are staying on top of it.
Helpful - 0
766573 tn?1365166466
Hey Terry! I am glad you acted on this. The rash can escalate really fast and it helps if you have something on hand to alleviate the spreading and discomfort. Glad you got your GP in the loop
☞ Keep us informed
Helpful - 0
Avatar universal
Just seen my health provider, she is sending me back to my GP for a stronger cream, and  gave me some over the counter meds to help with the itching.
I called her, and she said come right down and we'll get on top of it.
Other good tips as well.

Right now it's mild to moderate, she says 50% of her patients experience this, and insists i keep her regularly informed as to my progress.
She really eased my mind, very sincere, lucky to have her.

Thank you all for your responses, it spurred on to get moving right away.
Really relieved that i did.

Take care all,
enjoy your day.

Thanks again,

Terry, (the senior rookie :).
Helpful - 0
766573 tn?1365166466
The operative words in your post:

but as of yet , no improvement.

Hey did you happen to read the post directly above yours? It is by a person who had to stop the Incivrek (Teleprevir) because the rash is systemic and it snowballs like crazy. That means you more aggressive measures might be more helpful:

http://www.medhelp.org/posts/Hepatitis-C/Aftermath-of-severe-allergic-reaction/show/1826921

Honestly no one on here is trying to scare you but the rash is serious and does not respond well to over-the-counter and spa-like treatments. I encourage you to ask for a potent topical corticosteroid as well as an oral antihistamine while you still have a chance to contain this.

Call your doctor ASAP

Here is a link (not sure it will work or if you need a password)

The rash associated with telaprevir therapy is a primarily eczematous rash that resolves with discontinuation of therapy (Table 11). Typically, rash is seen within the first 4 weeks of therapy but can occur at any time during treatment. There are rare reports (< 1% of individuals treated with telaprevir-based therapy) of serious cutaneous adverse reactions, including drug rash with eosinophilia and systemic symptoms (DRESS) and Stevens-Johnson syndrome. However, because these complications may be life-threatening, they must be recognized early and all therapy must be stopped immediately.

To promptly identify rash, clinicians should encourage patients to report the following symptoms as they occur: rash, blisters or skin lesions, mouth sores or ulcers, red or inflamed eyes (“pink eye”), facial swelling, or fever. The help of a trained dermatologist is strongly recommended as deemed necessary by the clinician, particularly in more severe cases or those with mucous-membrane involvement. Although efficacy has not been fully established, rash can be managed with topical steroids or oral antihistamines when the rash is mild to moderate. Systemic corticosteroids should be avoided.

If discontinuation of telaprevir is necessary for progressive or severe rash, it is recommended that only telaprevir be discontinued first. If no rash improvement is observed within 7 days of stopping telaprevir (or earlier for worsening rash), clinicians should consider interrupting RBV or possibly pegIFN as deemed necessary. Patients should be monitored until the rash has resolved. Telaprevir must not be reduced or restarted if discontinued due to rash. For grade 3 rash, telaprevir must be stopped immediately. If there is no improvement in rash within 7 days of stopping telaprevir (or earlier if rash worsens), interrupt RBV.

All treatments should be stopped if drug rash with eosinophilia and systemic symptoms, erythema multiforme, or acute generalized exanthematous pustulosis is suspected. For severe rash, all treatment should be permanently discontinued.


http://www.clinicaloptions.com/Hepatitis/Treatment%20Updates/HCV%20New%20Agents/Module/Practical_Guide/Pages/Page%206.aspx
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Avatar universal
Welcome to the forum, Poohs the expert here when it comes to sides on incivek......... Good luck to you.
Helpful - 0
1815939 tn?1377991799
I looked up your creams and lotions and they will help moisturize the skin. The ectosone is a steroid cream but I don't know how strong it is. It may not be strong enough. You are on nothing for the itching.

It seems that many docs are not familiar with these drug reactions and they either do not treatment or they grossly under treat them. That is a mistake. These rashes and and will snow ball out of control rapidly. You need to get on top of them immediately.

I had a rash problem while on treatment. It was not severe enough to have to stop Tx, but it was pretty bad and was everywhere except my face and back. My treating team ignored it until I finally demanded them to act. Then they took forever to get the dosages correct and to even get the correct medications. I had hives, flat red plaques, tiny red bumps, small red bumps, medium red bumps, and a very fine redness which basically was reddened skin from an allergic reaction. They itched like crazy.

Here is what worked for me (all prescriptions):

Fluocinonide (steroid) ointment on the rash areas., It takes a while to clear it up, but it will eventually clear the area on which one puts the ointment. However, it is topical and the rash just moves to an untreated site.

Clobetesol solution for my scalp (topical).

Hydroxyzine 50 mg every 6 hours. This is oral.

The hydroxyzine is what fially got the rash under control. Without it I would never have controlled the rash.

These rashes are systemic allergic drug reactions. They are generally not going to clear up on their own and they are generally not going to clear up if they are under treated. We cannot stop the drugs, so the docs need to treat these rashes as if they are systemic drug rashes (which they are).  They need to treat them aggressively, in a timely manner, with the appropriate meds/creams/ointments and appropriate doses.  

If I were you, I would try to get on higher doses and also ask for Hydroxyzine.

Best of luck.
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