Hives

[jonihs]

I know I've heard alot of talk about rashes , but lately I've been getting hives everyday. they are in different places and only last for a few minutes to a few hours. The only new med I am on is Lexapro. I'm not using any new soaps, etc. and I think it was the Med. it would be alot more severe. Anyone else get these or should I see my Doc or just Ignore them?          
                               Joni

[susan400]

I've done several TX's for Hep C and somewhere along the way, I got a skin condition from the interferon, that I'm stuck with from now on.  It's basically 'hives' whenever I have any sun exposure, heat (no hot showers or hot tubs from now on), etc.  The dermatologist did a skin biopsy on me and the path report came back with something called telangiectasia followed by three more words (which I can't remember), but the appreviation on it is T.M.E.P.  Even though I am not on interferon at present at it's been almost 2 yrs since my last treatment (2 yrs in July 2010), I still have this condition.  I tested it out by putting on 45 SPF sunscreen and going out into the sun for just 1/2 hr, I literally watched my watch and after I came home, took my normal cold shower..., still got the hives.  So, sunscreen doesn't even prevent them.  The only way I can be in the sun at all is to be COMPLETELY covered up, which is totally ridiculous to try to do in 90 degree weather.  So, this doesn't make me real happy, but I live with it.  That's my story w/hives.  Also, of note, I got hives/anaphylactic shock from penicillin at age 15, so, I can no longer take it either.  Susan400

[vh717]

diagnosed 7 yrs ago, but probably had the disease 29 years.  biopsy showed first stage, minimal scarring.
woke up with hives (not itchy) on shins only--have had them 2 days.  also nausous when taking vitamins.
anyone else have these symptoms?
am new to this thread.
thanks everybody,  voxpop

[jabbajaws]

I get hives too and i take lexapro... i have just realised that this is prolly what it is but i have been taking lexapro for 2 years and this has only just started.  its really severe though and every day.. all over my body sometimes the palms of my hands sometiems all of my legs or my stomach.. sometimes islotaed.. its weird.. been taking antihistamines to stop it..

[willing]

I believe moving the mouse over a link will show the target URL in the status bar at the bottom of the browser in  either Netscape/Mozilla or IE. To copy the target URL to the clip board bring up the right-click menu and select "Copy Shortcut" in IE or "Copy Link Location" in Nestscape. Once you've copied the URL to the clip board you can, somewhat labroriously, create a new book mark in Netscape by BookMarks|Manage Bookmarks|File New | Boomarks. In IE, as tnhepguy suggests, you can paste the URL into the address bar and once your browser opens the page, select Favorites|Add to Favorites. Alternatively, in IE right-clink on the link, select "Open in New Window" and then Favorites|add To Favorites or in Netscape right-click on "Open Link In New Window" then select Bookmarks |Bookmark This Page (The medhelp site uses HTML "frames". The result is that pages opened while navigating the forum are opened in a new "frame" and don't change the URL in the address bar).

If none of this makes any sense or fails to work more serious intervention is necessary.  First turn the computer off. Then carefully remove the power cord and bury it in the back yard. While outside think about pruning and fetilizer.

[MajNeni]

Am I weird? (Don't answer that.)  
I'd really like to see the actual URL for the references, and prefer a title or topic followed by the URL.  I can cut and paste the URL easily enough.  
Of course I can right-click on the blue link, go to Properties, and find the actual URL; but I can't copy and paste it.  I have to write it down and type the URL in to go to it, so that if I like it, I can put the site in my favorites/bookmarks for HCV.  If I follow the link directly, then the URL still shows as good old MedHelp.  
I'll admit I'm definitely computer-challenged at this point.
Maj Neni

[cindee]

Hey girl, I have a horrible red...under the skin..splotchy looking rash type thing on my neck. I get hives and get sick on my stomach when I take Motrin or anything related. I think I'd call the pharmacy. Good luck, Cindee

[willing]

below is that how-to-html post. Be sparing with animated images or befud will get on your case... those interested in the anti-fibrotic effects of IFN should take note of the recent study madbyron posted above.
---
Everything we type into the "post a comment" window actually gets turned into HTML by the medhelp site-management software.
HTML is a a way of describing what a web page should look like. Often it's mostly text, but every once in a while there's
something called a "tag" that tells the browser to display something unusual. Tags usually have the form "<X> text </X>"
where "X" is some tag name.
<br>
For example, the "strong" tag is used for emphasis: if you type &lt;strong&gt; emphasize this &lt;/strong&gt; in a post, what people see is <strong> emphasize this </strong>.
<br>
The tag used to display a link to another web page is named with the letter "a" (for anchor). In the opening part of the tag you insert the URL address.
<br>
For example, if you type &lt;a href="http://www.medhelp.org"&gt;this link&lt;/a&gt what people will see is <a href="http://www.medhelp.org">this link</a>.
<br>
The tag used to display an image in the midst of your post is named "img". Once again you reference the URL of the image you want to display, however the format is a bit different. For example if you type &lt;img src="http://www.medhelp.org/images/logosm.gif"&gt; what people will see is <img src="http://www.medhelp.org/images/logosm.gif">;, the bitmap that appears at the top left of the medhelp screen.
<br>
A caution : if the fog is piled thick and deep, which it often is for me, it's easy to stumble while typing the tag opening or closing. Unfortunately, the software that manages this site is not very robust about detecting HTML errors in a post. In particu
lar, if you leave out the closing " while typing in the href="web address" no one else will be able to post to that thread, as I discovered a while back.. Hope this helps. If you want to see what the actual HTML for a web page you're looking at try "View|
Frame Source" in Netscape or "View|source" in IE.

[Ziggy2004]

Hi; I did break out in rash but only around my eyes.  In looking back on my journal, I found that in week 2 is when it started. My throat broke out in terrible sores but around my eyes, especially my eyelids, my skin became raw and very painful.  I could only use vaseline (which I kept in the fridge so it would be nice and cold) and cold tea bags.  This did help a little with the swelling and pain.  Since I was only able to tolerate the medication for 7 weeks, I cannot imagine what may have come up further into treatment.  The iching at times was so unbearable that I would want to tear my eyes out and it would even wake me up at night.
In reading some of the comments, I consider myself lucky it was isolated to only one part of my body.
Take care.
Z.

[ral]

Hi joni

Sorry to have broken in on your thread. I have had itching problems on and off on tx but it has not gotten out of hand. But if it did I would go right to the Doc. I take Lexapro and no problems there. I did take paxil and it upset my stomach terribly and made me feel dead with no emtion so I got off it right away. You never know about all the meds, we need to stay on top of how they make us feel.

I am sure you will figure it out

GOD BLESS

Bob L

[LvdByGod]

THANK YOU!!! I HAVE THE SAME PROBLEMS WITH POSTING AND SAVING SITES.  I WISH I KNEW HOW TO MAKE THOSE CUTE HYPERLINKS TOO :o)

[ral]

February 20th, 2004


Can Treating HCV Prevent Progression to Cirrhosis?
Henry Bodenheimer
Source: www.gastrohep.com

Hepatic fibrosis is a progressive insult responsible for morbidity and mortality in chronic hepatitis C infection. Thierry Poynard in his 1999 paper in Hepatology analyzed a large data set of liver biopsies in patients with hepatitis C and suggested that liver fibrosis progression was not uniform in individuals infected with hepatitis C. Some individuals appear to progress slowly while others rapidly progressed to cirrhosis. This dichotomy is perhaps most widely recognized in patients who have under gone liver transplantation. Patients with recurrent hepatitis C following transplant may develop cirrhosis in as short an interval as 4 to 5 years while progression to cirrhosis in a non-transplant setting typically takes 2, 3 or more decades.

Multiple factors have been identified as contributing to progression of fibrosis in hepatitis C. Three of the factors identified deserve highlighting:

Alcohol consumption is a modifiable cofactor which has been associated with more rapid progression of liver fibrosis. Although regular consumption of alcohol at levels more than 50gms of alcohol per day has been linked with rapid progression of disease, no safe level of alcohol consumption has been identified. It is wise therefore that patients with chronic hepatitis C infection avoid alcohol consumption.

A second factor associated with disease progression is fatty liver. Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease is increasingly recognized as a co-factor in disease progression in patients with various underlying liver conditions. This disorder is difficult to treat and pathogenesis may, in part, be related to insulin resistance associated with hyperlipidemia, diabetes and obesity. Hepatitis C infection itself, however, may contribute to lipid eposition within the infected liver. It is advisable that modifiable factors such as body weight, hyperlipidemia and insulin resistance be addressed and treated in patients with chronic hepatitis C infection.

A third factor which is not able to be modified but is associated with disease progression is the acquisition of HCV at an age greater than 40 years. Older patients appear to have more rapid progression of fibrosis than younger patients. Such information may be important in assessing prognosis and need for antiviral treatment.

A major question is whether liver fibrosis is reversible. Patients with established fibrous septa have shown gradual resolution of fibrosis with years of effective control of viral replication. The question remains, whether decrease in hepatic fibrosis in patients undergoing treatment for hepatitis C is a direct result of anti-fibrotic effect of alpha interferon, or is the beneficial effect a consequence of viral control. A recent report by Poynard in Gastroenterology 2002, addressed this question. Greater than 80% of liver biopsies evaluated in patients with sustained virologic response showed improved fibrosis while less than 10% showed a worsening. In contrast, less than 34% of individuals who showed non-response to interferon showed improvement in fibrosis while more than 20% showed a worsening. Such data suggest that the primary mechanism by which fibrosis is diminished in patients treated with alpha interferon is through control of viral replication.

In summation, chronic hepatitis C infection is an epidemic infection leading to chronic liver injury with hepatocyte necrosis subsequent inflammation and stimulation of hepatic fibrosis. This chronic process gradually leads to cirrhosis. Fortunately, with control of viral replication modulation of the intercellular matrix is possible and alpha interferon treatment regimens generating sustained virologic response are associated with improvement in hepatic fibrosis and even resolution of cirrhosis. In the future, assessment of hepatic fibrosis may be possible with non invasive assays and direct anti-fibrotic therapy maybe available to be coupled with inhibitors of viral replication to maximize the resolution of hepatic injury.

This "Soapbox" was published as part of the syllabus for the New York Society for Gastrointestinal Endoscopy 27th Annual Postgraduate Course - Endoscopic Decision Making 2003, held in New York, NY. 15 and 16 December 2003. See the NYSGE website.

References

[LvdByGod]

HOWDY RAL,your article was great but i wanted to put the original in my "favorites" and i could not find it with your link. your link went to the site home but not to the article itself.

can you tell me how to access it? there are so many places to go on that site. i'm also a member of that site as well. isn't it a great site!  thanks for any info, i would be so greatful, for any clues on how to find the article you quoated above. THANKS!

[ral]

Thanks TriGuy

I don't know how to get the link uploaded. If anyone can tell me how I would be glad to do it in the future..

It came from the Ne Hep C Advoacate

GOD BLESS

Bob L

[layla]

It sounds like the same "bumps" I have  and I have shown my hepatlogist. He says they are from the interferon. I don't take lexapro. They have increased somewhat but not extremely after all this time. Not really sure if they are the same but your description sounds just my my bumps. Wonder if the monkeys got em too??? LL

[Ella Mackenzie]

I just went to my general practitioner because of an interesting rash on my hands and one foot. I was concerned with the rash on my foot because I had a bunionectomy 4 months ago and although it was totally healed, I was worried it might be related. She prescribed betanucathason (spelling?) .05. I just got the script and haven't started to use it yet so I can't tell you if it works or not. I also started using Aveeno soap and that seems to help.
I lean towards calling my doctor about things I am worried about but it is difficult to know whether or not I worry too much. Better safe than sorry...or itchy in this case.

[DownThisRoad]

Hi Jonihs
I tried everything there was to try for this rash. I have alwasy heard that some with Hepatitis C and some who do the treatment meds start in with this severe itching.  I actually didn't have itching or rash in the beginning of my treatment at all and hoped that I would just bypass this side effect.  My itching started really bad on or around week 30. I suffered with it and continued to use bath salts, all kinds of lotions, itch cream and even a cream that my husband was prescribed that had some cortizone in it.  I would get relief from the itch with these for only a few hours and then whammy, the itch was back.

I finally called my GI and told them that I had this rash, itch and broken out skin mostly on my arms, backs of my legs and bottom and even started around my eyelids and nose.  My GI immediately called in a couple of prescriptions; Elidel creme that I can put on the broken out and itchy areas and then a 25mg pill that I take twice a day called Hydroxyzine (generic for Atarax).

After just the first application of the Elidel I started to get some relief and after 2 days of the Elidel and the pills, I was able to get total relief from itching. My skin where I had scratched so badly even starts to heal up now and the broken up areas on my skin are healing and not itching. As long as I use the creme and take the pills, I'm really not itching whatsoever. I looked up the Hydroxyzine pill to see if there would be any unusual reaction with the other combo meds that we take and I also take an AD; amitriptyline.  The information about Ataras says that it is given for itching and not only for itching but for people who have anxiety and either itch or anxiety from itching (this was my catagory) and that it also helps other medications work better.

I just wish that I would of called my GI the minute I started in with this problem and had him give me prescriptions right then.  It sure would of saved me a lot of money on over the counter products that didn't work for me and would of saved a lot of my time itching.

Call you doctor right away and don't wait and try to treat this with OTC products like I did.  Good Luck, try not to itch.  After a couple of weeks of this non stop itching and scratching, it really can tear up your skin.

[OkieJim]

So sorry to hear this. I got them also during my TX. They came on about week 10. My Dr. RX'd Alegra 180 and  Hydrocortisone Valerate Ointment. It did the trick I continued on the Alegra for the duration of my TX. I'm now 3 weeks post still itching alittle no hives and starting to feel more energy. It was all worth it.