Am I having a "true" allergy or a "pseudoallergy"?

[kagome777]

I have two herniated discs and therefore am in pretty severe pain from time to time and am trying to find a safe pain killer for when I need to take it.

About three months ago when this all started happening I was prescribed vicodin for pain and it helped greatly, I took it once to twice a day, alternating with ibpreufin. I was taking it for about a month with little to no side effects until one day I woke up and had this itchy, burning feeling on my arms (like a sunburn that itches). After getting up and moving around i noticed my arms had splotchy red patches that come and go. This will last anywhere from half a day to a couple days. My symptoms are less severe if I take a Claritin when I take the prescription.

I have talked to my pain management doctor about this and he says that he's unsure about my reaction and is trying me on a bunch of medication. So far I have the same reaction to vicodin, nucynta, tramadol, vicopreufin, and percocet.

What should I do? Is trial the only way to figure out what I can take? I just don't want to have a potentially life threatening reaction one day. What can I take safely? Any suggestions on what my doctor could try next?

[Syagpo77]

Any update? I have had the same exact issue and my pain management MD had the same response. I have even been in the ER,with severe hives, when taking methylprednisolone and Benadryl at home did NOTHING to help the symptoms. Right now, the only med I don't have a reaction to is fentanyl. I was doing great on dilaudid for months until I started getting hives. My MD doesn't even believe me about the nucynta bc apparently an allergic reaction is very rare. I don't need 24 hr round the clock medication that fentanyl patch provides. Have you had any luck with any short acting pain meds? Would love your feedback.

[Ginger077]

I have heard of people itching from taking narcotics but not the rash part. If your doctor is not sure try your pharmacist, they should k ow or maybe it's an interaction with another prescription and not the ibuprofen.
Hope this helPs
, best wishes
Ginger

[kagome777]

It's definitely not the ibuprofen. I can take that every day with no rash, only when I take the prescription pain killers will I get the rash. :\

[geminigirl1963]

My question is - with the different medications your doctor has prescribed are you still alternating them with the ibuprofen?  If so, my thinking is that perhaps the culprit for the rash is the ibuprofen and not these other meds.