Very itchy and bumpy rash after fever in 10 year old - help!

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10 year old ds came down with a fever last Saturday (between 38-39.6) followed by a really bad cough. The fever lasted for 6 days, the cough is still there. He’s now come out in a very itchy bumpy red rash all over his arms, legs, face and bum. I’ve put eurax cream on which helped a little, and I’ve just given him Piriton but he’s actually wailing with the pain and itching as it’s so bad. I’ll try to attach pics, but it looks more like mosquito bites than anything, except none of the rest of us have been bitten, and it’s all over most of his body! Any ideas what it could be? He’s had a horrible week with the cough and fever and now this..

There is such a thing as a post viral rash.

Also (could be the same thing) you can have an allergic reaction to a virus. One of my DC did.

You will know if it's an allergic reaction if the portion helps.

My Doctors are only doing phone consultations at the moment, but I reckon you could describe it quite well over the phone, as your description on here is very good.

Thanks Balloon
I did wonder about post viral rash. I’ve had that a few times but mine is always just red skin, not any raised or itchy bumps. But everybody is different so I thought I really should check in case it was something else.

I gave him the Piriton about half an hour ago, but no improvement yet. Doctors is a great idea - I’ve got a feeling they divert to 111 at the weekend and I can’t imagine how long I’d be on hold for this! And whether anywhere would see him given then he’s recently had a fever and still has a cough, so they might be worried about Coronavirus.

Poor kid!

Sorry, it sounded like I was being sarcastic about the doctors - I promise I wasn’t it was just a bit of a sleep deprived stream of consciousness! Apologies
I’ve gone through the nhs 111 online system and I’ve been able to book a callback from our local walk in centre - if anyone else is struggling with similar and can’t get through to their gp I’d definitely recommend that as an option!

Ha ha no I wouldn't have thought you were being sarcastic. I think you got what I meant - as they aren't going proper appointments I would imagine most people wouldn't bother as a phone appointment's no bloody good for most things, but as you describe it so well it might be ideal.

Hope he feels better poor love.

I have no advice but just wanted to say hope you get a call back son that looks so sore for him. Hope you don't have to wait to long

I came out in a rash yesterday, big blotchy light red ones, similar looking to your DS's ones. Some itchy. Have also had cough for 15 days with shivers and aches at beginning.

Managed to get a doctor's appointment over the phone yesterday, ended up doing a video one and she diagnosed pityriasis rosea. This can come on after a viral infection. Weird thing is the rash has completely gone this morning so I unlikely to be pityriasis rosea after all. My own theory is a post viral rash. Was googling coronavirus and rash but nothing came up.

Hope your DS feels better soon. Maybe some Eurax cream if you have it. Or a bath with oats?

Thanks all Well, I had a call back from our walk in centre who thought it could be chicken pox (again! He had it when he was 4, but apparently they can catch it again), but wanted us to go to the A&E to check. Because of his fever and cough, we would have had to go into an isolation pod while he was checked. So I went to pack a hospital bag, and just as we were about to get in the car I realised his rash had completely faded! It took an hour and a half but looks like the Piriton finally kicked in! We’re still home and he’s a lot less itchy and bumpy (so far!) but it’s still a mystery.

Really strange that yours were similar LittleSwede especially after you had similar symptoms. Dh reckons this could be an unknown Coronavirus symptom but we will probably never know.

That’s what a post viral rash looks like on one of mine - he’s very prone to hives & I think just scratching (because if the post viral rash) brings up the lumps/hives. My skin is similar

*Strange as in, I’m used to the kids having fevers but I’ve never seen this before, so it’s interesting that it’s happened to others as well!

When one of my sons was about 3yo he had a viral thing, vomiting, high temp etc. Lasted 24 hrs.
A week later he came out in a chicken pox style rash. Little blistery things, around his mouth, and on his body-but just where his clothes would be. He had none on the 'exposed' parts of his body, and it was summer was only wearing shorts and a t shirt.
Saw GP and he said he had no idea what it was, but DS was in fine form so he gave me a script to collect if we needed it. It went away over the next few days.
Now, that was in August. Just before xmas that year we suddenly noticed he was covered in bruises. But strange ones, with hard lumps in them. And in odd places, like his finger tips. He was covered in them. We were sent straight to A&E as they suspected leukaemia. I have to say I didn't as DS was again in great form. Anyway, turns out that it was a post viral rash he must have had in August, and it had caused a thing called ITP.
His platelet count was zero!
It resolved over time and never bothered him a bit. Anyway, the rash was unusual. But passed fairly quickly.
I would say keep a close eye on it and him, and if no improvement get it checked out.
The human body is a crazy place sometimes.

Thanks Gibbons that’s reassuring. Hopefully it is post viral and will clear up soon. I think if it was chicken pox, the rash and lumps wouldn’t disappear after Piriton, so hopefully it’s not that.

Gosh whatevah that must have been really scary! Crazy to think that all that was going on in his body over a few months. So glad to hear that he was ok! Human bodies are most definitely weird places sometimes! Thank you for the warning, I will definitely keep a close eye on him.

I have had Covid symptoms over the last two weeks and on day 12 or so broke out into an itchy rash on my face which lasted 48 hours. It was very dark pink and blistered.