Please help me identify this rash

[Cudz]

Hi
For background I have never suffered with skin allergies or rashes previously, however around 8 months ago I've developed some kind of dermatitis or something that causes my eyelids (upper and underneath) to be constantly red, dry and scaly and they swell up at least once a week too which is a nightmare. It took me an age to see a GP but when I finally did I had to push hard for a referral to the allergy clinic which they did but that was months ago and I haven't heard a thing.
Last week I woke up and my shoulders, neck and chest are now covered in the awful, angry, itchy, raised rash shown in the photo attached. Again I've tried to see the GP about it but can't get an appointment and the pharmacy won't give me any advise as I have an open referral. Does anyone have an idea what the rash is? Is it hives? Because I can't get any medical advice I've just been putting aveeno on but I'm not sure if that's making it worse? Any help would be appreciated. Thank you

That looks incredibly sore. I get eczema on my eyes sometimes which looks very like the photo you posted, and I've found cetaphil helpful or (randomly) Childs farm lotion brilliant. I hope you get the derm
appt soon

Aaaagh I'm still absolutely covered. It's really getting me down now. The GP hasnt even responded to my econsult request from before Xmas (have to do it all online at my surgery). Ive tried ringing numerous times to chase but i cant even get through after being on hold for almost 2 hours. Can I just demand a referral or even do it myself somehow? I know it sounds dramatic but it's genuinely affecting my life now. I'm constantly irritated and itchy and I don't want to leave the house as I just look so awful. I just stay indoors in pyjamas all day (I wfh so easy for me to be a hermit) I'm dreading school pick up and drop offs again from tomorrow 😔

Gosh I feel for you op! I can occasionally get itchy skin when my calcium levels are too high (I'm on a medication for lack of parathyroid glands) but never to that extent. How are you feeling apart from the itch? Do you have any other new symptoms? Do you have any current chronic conditions?

@spuddel no other conditions as far as i know just the whole body rash and the constant itching. Its more than just a rash its an immune reaction im sure of it. I know people have much worse i really do but its just having such a negative impact on my life im just so miserable and moody - its not fair on my ds me being like this😟

You don't have any muscle weakness? Just came across this paper about someone with similar sounding rash but they had muscle weakness and it was onset after their covid vaccines. I guess it's possible it could trigger an auto immune reaction. Treated with steroids bmcrheumatol.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s41927-022-00250-6

@spuddel no muscle weakness but it being linked to covid/vaccine has definately crossed my mind. I've had all the vaccines and had covid in Jan 2022. This all started back in Feb 2022 so the timings make me think there is a link. It could purely be coincidence but who knows?!

Hi OP, try Pityriasis Versicolor. I have that and your last pic looked very similar. I treat it with nizadol shampoo, rub it on the affected area and leave on overnight wash off in the morning. There is a family of related conditions so if not that one, maybe another. Good luck

The first thing that crossed my mimd esp
looking at your first pic is dermatitis herpetiformis which is a gluten related condition linked to coeliac disease. Not all DH patients have gut symptoms. Normally I wouldn’t recommend going gluten free before having blood tests but if it’s going to take for ever to be seen (and this is prob the worst weem
ever to get a GP appt) it might be worth a go. It does need proper diagnosis though and if GF diet not enough there are other drugs that can help. I think you need to be on a dermatology weighting list though not an allergy clinic one - round here certainly allergy clinics only see anaphylaxis type reactions, any skin reactions / suspected contact sensitivity are done by derm. All the best.

(Apologies for typos!)

Good shout re dermatitis herpetiformis. I have that but didn't think as it's only on my bum, sadly enough It does tend to blister and when scratched oozes clear watery liquid. Fiendishly itchy. Also auto immune of course.

Interesting re. dermatitis herpetiformis. I've had a google but my rash has never actually blistered even when I itch it. It just stays red and leaks a clear fluid. Seems that blisters are typical of dermatitis herpetiformis so that likely rules it out for me x

Long shot - could it be scabies?

Looks exactly like my brothers guttate psoriasis. It can take a few months before it goes.

It could be vasculitis - there are quite a few types but it can cause a massive rash like yours. Have you had bloods done to check for inflammation?

@Flabbyghasted gutatte psoriasis has been mentioned before and looking at it i agree that it could possibly be what I have (comparing to google image searches anyway!). I've taken a close up of it on my neck as of today - does this still look like your brothers?

@Cudz pretty much identical. Bits of further apart spots and bits where it merges together. Bits went flaky too, have you got any flaky skin? His spread for a few weeks and then stayed constant for another couple of months. It then disappeared. His was brought on by Covid.

@Flabbyghasted yes it's been very dry but I've been applying some prescribed emollient cream to help (although that stung so Ive had to stop using it). Mdid spread but has been pretty much like today's photo for a few weeks now. Gutatte psoriasis seems like a real possibility thank you

Yes this. I have it too and only on my back, chest and neck. Yours looks very severe if it’s this but worth a go? You can use canesten or any anti fungal cream, maybe just try a tiny bit? It’s a fungal infection so antihistamines won’t have any effect. Hope you feel better soon!

@Borahnatty the places you've mentioned (back, chest and neck) are where it's worse for me so Pityriasis Versicolor could also be an option for me. From googling isn't it more to do with skin discolouration rather than a rash though?

It’s def not pit vesicolor- that’s white patches on the skin. Pit rosea is a prob viral triggered pink spotty rash but doesn’t usually cause intense itching. Psoriasis can itch but not usually as much as derm herpetiformis- my money would still be on that until ruled out tbh. Your original pics looked blistery to me (little vesicles) and if you’re scratching the top off tiny blisters they might not be so obvious.

I had something very similar just after I had Covid. The itching was unbearable. My GP diagnosed urticaria (hives) caused by my immune system's reaction to the virus. I was prescribed very strong antihistamines 180g 3 times a day and steroid cream. 4 weeks later I still had the rash so they prescribed a course of steroids over 7 days plus different antihistamines. This finally did the trick. I feel for you though, it's awful to be constantly itchy. The best cream I found was Dermacool, a menthol aqueous cream. This really helped ease the itching. You can buy it from Amazon. I tried so many creams but this was by far the best.

OP when I was younger I use to go on the sunbeds and that is the exact same rash I use to get on my neck. I used a cream called Elocon, it would go within a day or so. My doctor prescribed it, I don't think you can buy over the counter. I remember the rash feeling heavy and like a second layer of skin.

You could contact local private clinics and ask if you can self refer. I've self referred into private before when utterly desperate.

I think pit v can be either white patches or pink/brown but it doesn't look much like it to me. On the other hand I think it should be treatable with a course of fluconazole if it was that so it might be worth a punt to see if it did help.

If you can't get an appointment with your GPs I would suggest one of 3 things: 1. Email your practice manager explaining the number of times you have tried etc and explain it is urgent and that otherwise you'll escalate to the local ICB 2. If your local area has it set up 111 may be able to book you in for a gP appointment with your surgery in hours (but that's not definite) - you could probably check if this is set up with your ICB's PALS team. 3. Contact your ICB's PALS to complain about your inability to book an appointment.

Your ICB (assuming you are in England) is the board which organises and supervises the local provision of healthcare. I'm happy to give it for you if you give me a county if you can't find it by googling "county ICB". Some don't have PALS though which is really rubbish.

Thanks @Augend23 that is really useful. I will try the GP again tomorrow and see if I have any luck. If not then I will follow your advice