Is it really scabies?

[itchybaby]

My 21 month daughter got what looked like poison ivy on her knee a couple of weeks ago. I have been putting hydrocortisone cream on it and even though the redness is gone, the rash is still there. Two weeks later, the redless rash slowly spreads down her leg and starts to occupy the other leg. One afternoon I pick her up from daycare and on her upper arms is very red bumps that she had been scratching so they are slightly scabbed. I took her to the doctor and they tell me that it is scabies. No one else has it. Not even at daycare. My doctor said (which I don't believe) that the other kids could have had it two years ago, and become immune. When did we form an immunity to parasites? Regardless, we treated her with emlite and the rash is still spreading and never subsiding. It has only been 3 days. Is this normal? Should I go somewhere else for another opinion? There is no possible way that she could have been recontaminated. HELP!

[Bhupinder Kaur, MD]

Hello,
MMR has measles, mumps and rubella components. Out of these all, measles and mumps component can cause an allergic reaction because the virus strains were grown in embryonated hens' eggs and chick embryo cell cultures. So these are the two components that may have caused allergies in your daughter’s case.

Regarding the steroids,then they have to be taken for a drug allergy till the symptoms subside.I would advise you to adhere to the doctor’s prescription.You may also give her antihistaminics.

I hope that helps.Take care and pls do keep me posted on how you are doing or if you have any additional doubts.Kind regards.

[itchybaby]

So we saw a dermatologist today and she said its not scabies! First she said it looks viral, then when I told her she had the varicella and mmr a week before the rash started (which was way back in early April now) that it could be a reaction to the mmr. Then treating it with elimite made it worse! She said that something in the mmr causes a toxin in the body and that could be what she is reacting to.Have you ever heard of this? Does this mean we shouldn't get the next mmr? We are treating this with oral prednisolone for 5 days, then triamcinalone 0.1% for 3 weeks. Should I be worried about the pediactric side affects of topical corticosteroids because of larger skin surface area to body weight ratio? 3.5 weeks is a long time to be on steroids.

[itchybaby]

I took my daughter back to the doctor this morning because the rash was still going strong a week later. A different doctor saw her and said it didn't look like scabies to her because of it being on both cheeks like it was. She thought it looked more like a dry skin dermatitis with keratosis polaris but she was stumped. She gave us atarax for itching and triamcinalone for the rash. If it doesn't get better by friday, she gave us a dermatologist to go to. Knowing it takes forever as a new patient to get into anywhere, I went ahead and made an appointment and got lucky with a open spot from a cancellation in 2 days! YEA! I'll let you know what it really end up being.

[Bhupinder Kaur, MD]

Hello,
Transmission of the mites involves close person-to-person contact of the skin-to-skin variety.It can be from close relatives of friends also.Also sometimes may not show any symptoms for months also after infestation.So if your daughter has scabies,it is not necessary a recent infection.Scabies mite can only live off of a host body for 24-36 hours under most conditions.So it has to be spread through a person to person contact only.

Itch and bumps take some time to heal even after treatment. Wait for one or two weeks. If there is no relief then pls get a second opinion as then diagnosis of scabies needs to be questioned.

Hope it helps. Take care and pls do keep me posted on how your daughter is doing or if you have any additional queries. Kind regards.

[itchybaby]

I have now been to the sitter and all the children have been checked. No one has scabies. Is there any possible way that she could have caught it from no one? I have decided to give the treatment time to work (or not work) before taking her for a second opinion. Another question I have is, if it is scabies, when after the treatment will she stop getting new bumps? It has been two days and she is still getting bumps. Not a lot but enough to see that there is more.

[Bhupinder Kaur, MD]

Hello,

Scabies is an infestation of the skin with the Sarcoptes scabiei mite. It is characterized by intense itching, usually at night and by small insect-type bites lesions on the skin. Diagnosis of scabies is made by scraping the skin and viewing the material under a microscope to see the characteristic mite or eggs.
From the symptoms that you have described, it is difficult confirming scabies.It can be contact dermatitis,eczema or some dermatitis also.

I would suggest you to consult a dermatologist for these itchy areas. There is no use trying over the counter drugs with hit and trial method in such a young child.

I hope it helps. Take care and pls do keep me posted on how your child is doing or if you have any additional doubts. Kind regards.