Red spots all over the body itching constantly

[Samfelice]

My mom, who's 78 and was in pretty good health until this year when she needed open heart surgery, came down with this rash, starting on the palm of her hands, then the back of her legs and within a week, all over her body. They are red spots that itch horribly. She had a fever after one week and was freezing. We took her to the ER and they admitted her for tests for 5 days. Came up with nothing. This was the beginning of September. After putting her on prednisone and taking her off of all other medication (she'd been on Wellbutrin and an anti-ulcer drug) there has been very little progress. She just takes a lot of benadryl to relieve the constant itching.

Has anyone else seen this kind of thing?

[Samfelice]

Thank you so much for responding. All the different specialists she's seen think it might be some kind of a reaction to a drug. I thought perhaps it was a reaction to blood transfusions but that was back in February. She still has the symptoms and has been taken off everything now. The cholesterol drug was the last to be dropped last week. She's now seeing a specialist for arthritis as she has really bad swelling in the hands and major arthritis pain coming from, they think, the prednisone, which she's also no longer taking. She now just has itching on arms and legs. I thought it might be stress as she's dealing with possibly losing her house as well. I really appreciate your thoughts on all this! Best to you and thanks again for your time!

[Dr. Kokil Mathur]

Hi
Welcome to the forum!
This looks like urticaria or hives. The swellings or wheals produced after itching can be pale (of skin color) or red. Urticaria is usually triggered by allergens, such as drugs, foods, insect bites, inhaled substances, in response to sunlight, cold, heat, stress, exercise, or a viral infection. Since your mother had a heart operation, she must be on medications. Maybe one of them is causing this reaction. Other common allergens are pollen, mold, dust, pet dander, or cosmetics. Also at times abnormal liver function causes itchy and red skin. Just go over these possibilities in your mind. Something may strike you. In many cases, hives clear up themselves and don’t require diagnosis or treatment. However if they persists
Hope this helps. It is difficult to comment beyond this at this stage. Please let me know if there is any thing else and do keep me posted. Take care!