Itchy bumps on elbows psoriasis or eczema?

[littlew22]

I have itchy bumps on both of my elbows (outer-side only).  They appeared on both left and right elbows at same time about a week ago.  The bumps look skin-colored, almost like blisters or mosquito bites, but can look pinkish-red after itching or after I apply lotion. I went to a doctor (not a dermatologist mind you) and she quickly said it could be psoriasis, and to just keep them moisturized.  But everything I read about psoriasis says red itchy rashes that turns scaly, and I've never see anything (information or pictures) that shows psoriasis to start out as blister/mosquito-like bumps.

I've also been getting smaller callus-like bumps/areas on the sides of my fingers, that don't itch. I moisturize them with aquaphor ointment and then they disappear.  Not sure if they're related to the elbow bumps, but they don't look or feel the same.

Do the bumps on my elbows sound like psoriasis?

[addy331]

I want to second the post on DH - the gluten rash, they call it.  Check your family history and see if people have celiacs (gluten intolerance), fibromyalgia, schogrens, chronic fatigue, and any other auto-immune disorders.  If they're older, or even younger, they may have never been diagnosed with these things - but if they've had mysterious mood, pain, allergenic, or reproductive issues that were never identified, that could point to auto-immune, which could point to celiacs.  These things tend to clump together, and if anyone in your family has issues with these things, they could have celiacs too - which means you're at increased risk (celiacs like many of these is genetic). Just to give you an idea, my dad has fibromyalgia, my mom has schogrens, my aunt has fibromyalgia, schogrens, and celiacs and my grandmother probably had at least celiacs, but could also have had some of these other conditions.

A rash like the ones being described here could be a symptom of celiacs disease.  Incidentally, it does show up in people without intestinal pain - but in 90% of people who get this rash, intestinal damage has already occurred, so it's a really good idea to get a biopsy of it specifically to test for celiacs, just to be safe.  From what I understand, they do a quick biopsy and can tell you whether you have celiacs or not.  I'll be going through this whole process with my doctor as of tomorrow - I'm only 26, but there's a big history in my family of all this stuff, and the rash plus other issues such as major, uncharacteristic mood swings, lethargy, irregular periods, short term memory issues, vitamin deficiencies, regular low grade fevers, etc. could point to an auto-immune issue, and I want to get checked out.  

Basically, get a red, raised, patchy rash or one that's flesh-colored or with pink little bumps (can turn purplish after scratched), and that recurs especially on the outside of the elbows, knees, and buttocks, checked for celiacs.  97% of people with celiacs disease are undiagnosed right now in this country.

[jbrx1]

In response to the original post and to rob277x,
     I have had similar itchy bumps on my elbows and on my knuckles. They are small patches of bumpy skin on the outsides of those two jointed areas. They do not look anything like the pictures I have found of Dermatitis Herpetiformis, Granuloma annulare, nor do I have the multi-system wide symptoms described by addy331. No, my itchy little bumps are irritating but fairly benign and are held to just those two areas of my body like most of the other people who have replied in this forum.
     Also, I am a pharmacist who just recently graduated and can tell you that steroid creams like cortisone will work on nearly any itchy skin lesion despite the etiology of the offending agent. It simply calms your immune response in the area of application. The immune response is nearly always the cause of the itching not the offending agent such as shampoo or a fungus. Therefore the steroid cream will stop the itching but either not help (shampoo) or make it worse (fungus). However, itchy skin issues that do not have an obvious cause (insect bites) will usually either self resolve or cannot be helped anyway, such as an allergy to an unknown agent or an agent that cannot be avoided. This is why doctors frequently prescribe the steroid cream because it should at least make you feel better AND because no one can know exactly what is causing the itching without doing an unreasonably high priced investigation into your problem. It would be like asking the FBI to investigate my missing sock. In the case of the people above who have described skin conditions far worse than those of the original post, the investigation is obviously warranted and those people should also check into other forums that have much more useful information than this post for those advanced conditions.
Back to the original issue, I too have recently moved from a cooler climate into a very hot climate and began to see the bumps within a week of arrival. I have also recently experienced a sunburn. Nothing seems to help the itching except scratching. I am an otherwise healthy male in my mid 30’s who is not on any chronic medications and has not recently changed any personal hygiene brands. The only difference that I can think of is the change of temperature and humidity. It is both hotter and drier where I live now. - JB

[coco121785]

my fiance has had these problems for a couple of months now.they are all over his elbows some on his hands and arms.i seen one on his ear.im really tired of them appering and every time we go to the dr they give us the same thing.its just time to move to a dermatologist because this is weird and very stressfull.

[ohhelpme202]

i've got a similar thing, redness rash on my elbows ans bumpy like blisters on the side of my hands and sometimes on my palm too. I don't have it all the time but always comes up around july. After googling it i couldnt find anything for my elbows but found out what was wrong with my hands I think..
http://www.internationaleczema-psoriasisfoundation.org/dyshidrotic_eczema.php4

If you type in 'dyshifrotic eczema' to google images too.
Anyways anyone know what is best to calm it and make it less noticable i've been using E45 and it's not done much.

[lz1234]

can u tell what cream to use for this itching redness on my elbows

[kandch]

My symptoms are similar to many detailed here (innocuous, itchy elbow and ankle bumps that scale and seep when feverishly scratched; a smattering of these on this sides of my fingers), but mine seem to be exacerbated by red meat consumption.