PUPPS? Horrendous itching, apparently not OC....

[Elibean]

..I've had liver function and bile salt tests a week ago, and all was well. Had repeat LFTs yesterday and not got the results yet, but willing to be I don't have cholestasis (hands and feet not the problem).

BUT I'm up most of the night itching: it usually starts in the evenings, gets much worse as soon as I'm in bed, and up until now goes away during the small hours...but today I'm still itching (arms, boobs, bump, back) and its morning!

Help! Any tips or solutions? I've tried Piriton, calendula cream, endless moisturizing (fragrance free) and cool showers...all help a bit, but not much.

No rash, either. I only have just over 2 weeks to go till delivery (section due to transeverse lie planned for 38 weeks) but am trying to cope with under 3 yr old dd on 4-5 hours sleep per night, and am in danger of scratching my skin off! Sorry for the rant...

Poor you I had this also, starting about a week before the due date and lasting till about five days after dd was born (she was 11 days overdue which seemed like forever)! I thought I was going to go crazy.

The only thing that I found that helped was dissolving some baking soda in warm water and then using a flannel to rub it all over the itchy part of my skin. It calmed the itching down for long enough for me to get back to sleep... I kept the bowl by my bed so I could reapply without getting out of bed.

At the hospital they gave me a pill (can't remember what it's called) that was supposed to help with the itching. A midwife recommended aloe vera gel, and a nurse said she had this and holland and barrett's 'skin, hair and nails' pills worked... I tried these and it did go away but this was after the birth so probably would have gone away anyway?

Hope you find something that helps, it's so awful!

jTHanks, Kiwi....will get the baking soda out now (though maybe not putit inside my ears, which are also itchy today!).

I wonder waht the pill was - probably Piriton.

Five days after though - was hoping it would vanish the minute I had my baby.

I had this it's horrible, I took Zirtek tablets and they seemd to ease it. I know it's hard but try not to scratch once you scratch one place it spreads everwhere! I spent most of the time in the bath.

Thats it exactly - spreads the minute I give in to a single itch. It is a relief to hear others describe it so accurately, tbh...though sorry you've suffered too!

Just got out of second bath of the morning. Is Zirtek ok in pregnancy then? Have been trying Piriton, but only at night because it makes me sleepy (not asleep, of course, grrr). Worked a bit for a while, but no longer.

I've had evil, sore itching during this pg - but only down below - have discovered Greenbaby Perinial Gel - cools and soothes a treat. Even if it doesn't work for your itching I'm sure it will be wonderful for the actual prescribed area after the birth (unless, of course you have a cs).

That sounds even worse...I do get some itching there, but mostly at the top of my legs rather than inside thank goodness! I am having a section, baby is transverse...but will remember name of gel, sounds nice. Good luck, hope your itch gets better soon.

That's right, the pill was piriton. It didn't really seem to do much. Hopefully yours will vanish right after the birth! I was so exhausted afterwards but still couldn't sleep for itching. However I did have a rash (developed about a week after the itching started - maybe it was from all the scratching!) so possibly mine was a different thing. And I did notice a definite improvement 2-3 days after the birth, it was by five days that the itching had completely stopped (I think).

Hello..i had this too from 12 weeks, rash was so bad my legs swelled up to twice the size and i was initially hospitalised as they didnt know what it was!!

I tried everything...piriton (the older type not the one a day type) relieved the itch, didnt get rid of it completely im afraid, i ended up taking it at 2 hourly intervals, much more often than says on packet but doc said it was ok...my baby was fine. As you are later on you may ne able to use a stronger anti-histamine.

Mine came and went during the pregnancy but never as bad as the first time and unfortunately i get periodic outbreaks since giving birth though this is uncommon from what i've read. Now im not pregnant i use Fexofenadine when it flares up which sorts it v. quickly, not sure if this is suitable for later pregnancy or not.

You can be prescribed a steroid cream which i also found helped relieve the itching, i think i had betnovate. I personally found that nothing else helped.

Not many drs/midwives aware of it, see if your GP can refer you to the hospiatal dermotologist.

Have to say that it does drive you insane but at least is not harmful to baby. Also i read in a medical paper that if you have it then 2:1 chance you are having a boy (see below).

here are a couple of links if that helps

dermatology.about.com/cs/pregnancy/a/puppp.htm

this is a more medical paper but i found really good.

intl.elsevierhealth.com/e-books/pdf/88.pdf

if you google under PUPPP then you get more links.

I had this too, and piriton did work for me to a certain extent - didn't cure the itching (nothing can do that) but did ease it a bit. Other than that, I'm afraid there's not a lot you can do except count the days (as if you're not doing that anyway!).

The transverse lie has probably stretched your skin more than a head-down baby would, which has probably partly caused it. PUPP is triggered by the skin being stretched too much, which is why it usually happens in the last couple of weeks and is more common if you are having twins.

Could explain also why it's more common in boy than girl pregnancies, as boys are usually about 6lb heavier than girls. Thanks hairybabysmum, I didn't know that it was sex selective! I had a boy last time, though, so it holds true for me. Currently 25 weeks pg with second baby, and no PUPP yet, but am waiting and seeing...

Tutti, that makes sense re stretching - I look as though I've swallowed a large bone, sticking out on both sides! But its definitely a girl bone

I feel comforted not being alone with it, knowing others have had it and survived (!) and at least I'm not at the rash stage. I do come up in red welts if I scratch - just like urticaria (hives) which I've had in the past, when I've been run down in winter.

Its the lack of sleep more than the itching which is driving me nuts - am worried about being utterly useless by the time Bump unBumps.

Thanks everyone, as usual MN has boosted my morale and made me feel better - even if there is no cure!

KiwiEs....thank you so much for the baking soda tip: I did that last night (as well as taking Piriton) and it made a big difference. Woke up four or five times, desperate to itch, but grabbed the flannel instead and ended up asleep again rather than on MN at 3am....very grateful!

Elibean, I'm so glad it helped and you managed to get some sleep... not too much longer to go. DD is my first baby so I could catch up on sleep during the day - can't imagine trying to cope with itchiness/lack of sleep with another child to look after!

Elibean - I've been suffering (that really is the best word for this situation ) with this since the beginning of October. It has mainly been on my breasts but has spread elsewhere too. I am now 27 weeks pg. I had blood tests like you and they came back negative. I was given piriton tablets but haven't been able to take these much as they know me for 6 and I fewel groggy the next day too if taken overnight. The midwife did get me some aqueous cream with menthol in it which really helps for an hour or so but you can reapply it as often as needed. Mine has nearly cleared up but still gets me every so often. I have had this before when not pg too and nothing worked then - not piriton, not stronger antihisamines, not even several courses of steroids. It seems to appear and disappear when it feels like with no rhyme or reason.

I really hope you get some relief soon - and sleep too. I sympathise whole heartedly

Elibean, it's worth thinking about being induced early if the PUPP gets really unbearable. Doctors will take this into account when fixing induction dates.

I was induced at 11 days overdue because of it, as they would normally have waited till 14. Having said that, induction didn't work for me and I found it a horrible procedure, but it works for some people and it might be worth considering.

Thank you all...think the worst thing about this horrid condition is how nuts it makes me feel (do'nt even have a rash to show for it!) so not being alone with it really boosts morale.

Cadbury, I'm so sorry you're suffering too - yes, it is suffering: I find it takes a lot of the fun and pleasure out of these last few days/weeks, which is such a shame. Suppose there are much worse things, but its hard to keep a perspective on virtually no sleep and a lot of itching!

TuttiFrutti, I'm having a section at 38 weeks as it is...bump is transverse, and they don't want to risk me going into labour (second baby) in case of cord prolapse. No induction on offer, as previous section - but if OC was diagnosed they would bring date forward by a week. My OB is being very good really - doing liver function tests weekly, in case its cholestasis (feet did itch last night, but not palms) with late onset - but have a feeling they'll keep coming back negative, and I'll keep itching. OMG, imagine being overdue AND having this

KiwiEs...in some ways, the distraction of dd helps. But the tiredness is hard, I admit - especially for a middle aged Mum like me! Baking soda, sadly, did'nt work so well last night...wonder if it had a bit of placebo effect the first time? Who cares, at least I had one decent night!

With PUPPP you have a rash (urticaria) mainly on your forearms, the bump and thighs. I had this and it drove me berserk! But if you have no rash I don't think it can be PUPPP (sorry if someone has already said this but I haven't read all the replies yet). If you google images of PUPPP you can see what it looks like.

I used Piriton and E45 itch relief cream but really didn't find much that worked. It started to go as soon as the baby was born but took about a week to go completely.

Glad to see they are continuing to give you the liver function tests, as it does sound like it could be OC to me. If it is OC there is a drug they can give which eases the itching - I can't remember what it's called. Prufrock took it so you could a search for one of her threads.

HTH.

Yes, thats what I'd heard....I've had urticaria as a child, and also a few years ago when I was ill with something else. It only ever came up when I scratched - like weals? This one comes up bright red when I itch, but not the white blobs in the middle...so I have wondered. And hence the ongoing OC tests. Sigh...

Thanks, gingernut, will search Prufrock's threads.

I had the rash anyway, not just when I scratched IYSWIM.

Huge sympathies BTW, it is really horrible. I couldn't sleep for it and it is one of the reasons I don't think I'll be having any more babies (luckily it was my second anyway - I didn't have this problem with my first).

I've found a photo here: www.emedicine.com/derm/images/298350PUPPP_-_2.jpg, not a very good one but it shows a rash very much like the one I had (sorry you'll have to cut and paste as I can't get the link to work).

No, no rash like that or anything else. So if not PUPPS....but hands aren't itchy, and feet rarely are, and bump/boobs/neck/arms/legs are, waht on earth can it be?!?

It feels like having bugs crawling under my skin, is much worse at night, when very tired, or after eating (esp. sugary foods) and sort of does feel like a histamine reaction (I get cold inside, skin gets hot outside, and I feel crappy). Piriton helps a bit, I think - but not very much.

Moisturizers, creams, oils etc make it worse.

Bicarb of soda in water seems to help a bit.

Bile test came back as '2' ten days ago, LFTs normal.

I hate not understanding things that feel this horrible (utterly losing adult self here)!

Just a message to add my sympathies to your condition. I had severe itching with my first pregnancy for a few weeks and I know how horrid it is. You just can't do or concentrate on anything and for me too, nothing seemed to work completely (cold showers were best). The itching went when I stopped using this special pregnancy oil on my skin.

Have you used any different creams, are you using any different washing powder or eating anything that may be aggravating you now and not before?

Once again, sympathies.

Hi I just wanted to add some info about PUPPS for any new sufferers out there. I'm 33 weeks pregnant and just got rid of it after 2 weeks of hell. The doc prescribed steroid cream and antihistamine neither of which I wanted to take and after trying various natural remedies and creams what worked for me (I know it's different for everyone) was acupuncture, as often as possible, to tackle whats going on internally at the root of the problem, as opposed to just topically. My acupuncturist explained it had to do with a build up of heat in the liver. And a great cream called 'Banish my Rash' Emu oil, I got it on Amazon. Having being told I would have to endure the ferocious itch until after the birth, it cleared up in 10 days. Also I kept a flannel soaked in a bowl of chamomile tea in the fridge, to place on the rash, this really helped calm down the redness and soothe the itch. Hope this helps, I know what works for one may not work for another but the docs seems to know so little about it, I was glad i tried the alternative route first.