Here we go again...

[~ Vik ~]

*sigh*

We are starting to get random hives again.   

We've had Dylan's allergies under relatively good control for quite some time now.  He does still get hives occasionally (usually only a few), but really that's to be expected in a daycare setting.  He's very rarely needed benadryl (usually a simple washing of the affected area is enough to clear them up in a few minutes), and we've always been able to figure out why - playing with a child who just had yogourt, touching a bowl that had milk or egg in it, mustard as a hidden ingredient in a spice mix.  The carers at the daycare are excellent (one is Dylan's aunt!) and really are diligent - I trust that they are doing everything in their power to control his allergies.

Fast forward to last week - he had hives 3 of the 5 days that he was in daycare, and the cause wasn't immediately obvious.  They were also widespread enough/bothersome enough that they gave him benadryl on 2 of the 3 occasions.  By the third time, one of the carers told me that she suspected that he was developing a reaction to his sunscreen    I know that that's plausible, as allergies can develop over time, but it seemed like a very sudden and serious reaction to something that he's used for over a year with no problems.  We had the same sunscreen at home and last weekend I did a "spot test" on my own, putting a small amount on his arm, torso, and forehead, with no reaction.  I used it all over for a trip to the zoo, and no reaction.  Had hives again on Monday, and then had hives THREE TIMES today.  Once when dh dropped him off (likely playing with a child who had had milk/yogourt for breakfast, they cleared quickly), once at lunch time (to a lunch that he had eaten before without problems, also cleared quickly), once during a walk after lunch (had to cut the walk short as these were more severe, brought him back to the room and washed him up, didn't give benadryl as they seemed to clear).

Then, when I came to pick him up, I noticed that his chin was blotchy and red, and that his neck was red with some small welts.  I pulled up his shirt, and sure enough he was COVERED.  From neck to waistband, on his front only.  I gave him benadryl and they did clear up within about 1/2 an hour.  He was fine when we got home, had a good supper, gave him a bath, and went down for the night without any troubles.  No signs of today's misadventures except a couple of shiners (which he always gets after nasty hives) and an eczema flare.

But WTH?   We haven't experienced this since we discovered the mustard allergy.  He had been getting random hives after meals, and we finally narrowed down the common ingredient to mustard and eliminated it.  No more random hives, and it was later confirmed by blood test.  Now I feel like we're back where we were, but this is even MORE random, and I can't think of anything that connects the episodes.  We've also been getting some mucousy poops (not diarrhea, but soft and looking like someone blew their nose in there) on random occasions.  So something is clearly bothering him, but for the life of me I can't figure out what.

Just frustrated.  And sad.  And feeling like a bit of a failure because I can't figure out how to fix this.  

Thanks for letting me vent.

[Jimbob]

I really feel for you. It is so hard as a parent when we can't instantly fix things. All we want is to have our children safe and happy.

Allergies can be very difficult to work out. My son is allergic to dairy, egg, nuts and peanuts but there are definately other things he is reacting to at the moment. We did do 5 days on neocate advance only to see if his eczema cleared and bowel movements improved and they did. We are now waiting for skin prick tests to test the most obvious suspects plus a few others. At the moment I have got James on a very simple diet which has just 6 foods as I did not want him to stay neocate only for too long as he did have quite a severe food aversion when younger.

I hope you are able to figure things out soon. Is it possible somebody at daycare is wearing perfume that could be causing it. Have they changed the soap they use? Could it be something in say play doh? Do they make their meals from scratch? If not is it possible there could be cross contamination issues? Has a member of staff recently got a pet that your ds could be reacting to? Could it be a sun cream that another child is wearing that he is reacting to?

Kelly

[ireneee]

Hi Vikki,

I know how you feel! Big hugs

It's so hard to figure out, especially when the hives seem so random. And when you think you have resolved the problem in the first place!!! We get the same every so often too.

If it's affecting his poops as well, do you think it is something he is eating? As opposed to just being touched with something he is allergic to?
Is it possible that the nursery have changed caterers / recipes?
Cross contamination - using the same spoon for someone else then for your LO?

Otherwise, is it something that the kids might be playing with? Do they go outside - is there a plant or something that the kids play with and might cause a reaction?

I know that DD gets to play with stuff like shaving foam at her nursery and sometimes, these can bring up hives and her eczema. But I don't want her to miss out on it either, even if it does cause discomfort

Please don't feel bad - I know it is hard to see them looking all red and blotchy when all you want is for them to enjoy everything

Good luck - I hope you find the answer soon.

Irene

[deb]

Ooh, hadn't thought of a pet allergy, and animal hair/dander can sure be a problem for sensitive people!

I was also wondering, for cleanup here we sometimes use wet wipes, like the kind you buy for wiping bottoms when changing diapers. We make sure to get the ones without fragrance, but if they've got some WITH fragrance, that might be causing it too.

And since some of it seems to be digestive and some of it seems to be contact, like the reaction only on his front, maybe something spilled, or a new soap was used to wipe off something that had spilled.... might the digestive be a part of the overall allergic reaction on the skin? Might be something to ask the allergist - and it probably wouldn't hurt to call in the allergist on this one.

[MasynSpencerElliotte]

{{{hugs}}} Vikki,

I'm on my way to work, but that sucks...I hate mystery hives!  I was wondering about soaps/environmental stuff too.

[~ Vik ~]

Thanks everyone I've got to get ready for work but will pop on tonight when I get home. You've definitely given me some ideas to consider!

[Mashi]

Oh Vikki! So sorry to hear this!

On the sunscreen front, I know you say it seems strange to suddenly develop an allergy or react to something he's been fine with for so long but that it exactly what happened to me with sunscreen.  The same sunscreen I had used for years, and worse that I had been using all that summer, and I one day broke out in a disgusting, horrible, awful, unbearable skin rash. Then the rashy bits turned into welts and it was disgusting to even look at. Worst is that it happened on my trip to Canada when I took DH to meet my family and we had awesome weather and so many beach trips and fun outings planned and everywhere we went I had to keep my back, arms and upper chest covered (ie/ pretty much wearing winter clothes) because everyone insisted that I looked so digusting that they would be freaked out if they didn't know me and saw me standing near them in public.      The only person who would go near enough to me to put ointment on my back was my 9 year old nephew and he insisted on wearing mittens even though he was putting it on me with a q-tip  Ya, it was pretty disgusting.  I wasn't able to see a doctor (no insurance), could only talk to the pharmacist and he was insistent it was allergy to the sun and/or sunscreen.

I took LOADS of photos of it (and few photos of the rest of my trip, it was too embarassing, what a wasted holiday    )and went to the doc when we got back to England.  Doctor and chemist in England both said they were pretty sure it was not an allergy to the sun, and not an allergy to the sunscreen but an allergic reaction that happens when the sun HITS the sunscreen and activates whatever chemical it is (I used to know, had it written down, moved to Germany and have lost it) and that reaction is what causes a skin reaction.   And until then I had used that sunscreen for YEARS - the only thing I could think of was that I had used it in Korea where it's sunny yes, but a permanent layer of haze and pollution blocks a lot of rays, and in England where the sun isn't exactly all that hot - but then used in 30+ degree Canadian sun blaring down on me, maybe that was what it took?  So maybe it's just the time of year where the sun is strong enough to cause that reaction in Dylan?  (FWIW I have only used sunscreen ONCE this summer in Germany, we also have the sun blaring down, but I generally try to stay in the shade or keep lightly covered, and the one time on the beach when I really had no choice, I used a friend's sunscreen and within 10 - 15 minutes could feel the itching and about an hour or so later the rash and welts began. I took Fenistil for it and it was soooo much better than the creams I had used before and much faster and better than Benadryl - DS has taken Fenistil before for severe reactions to drugs and they clear up quickly so may be a good antihistamine to ask your doc for, it is specifically meant to clear up rashes and hives from allergic reactions).

The other thing is, you mentioned gastro symptoms with it, and I wonder if it is just that with the skin being such a large and important organ, perhaps lots of body energy and resources are being directed towards healing it, taking away from his distestive functioning?

[scarlettsmom]

Aw Vikki - so sorry, I know how incredibly frustrating this can be!  Especially after getting a lot under control.  Huge huge ((((Hugs))))

PP mentioned cross contamination.  With severe allergies, that can happen quite a bit.  Things like even throwing all his utensils/plates into a dishwasher with other plates/utensils with an offending food.  The bit about things that might be used to play with being an offending allergy is also a good point.  Gwynnie had a corn allergy and it was in SO many fun things that we had to get rid of here at home.  Nursery art projects/play time could very well be a culprit.

Hoping you can isolate the cause very very soon.

[~ Vik ~]

Thanks so much everyone   Fortunately, Dylan *only* had hives once today, unknown cause, but they were localized to his chin and cleared up very quickly.  I made his lunch and brought it in for him today, and now he's home for the weekend, so hopefully the time will help to desensitize his skin a bit.

Have they changed the soap they use?

Not sure if it's been changed, but he did get his clothes AND spare clothes wet, so he was wearing a daycare shirt when I went to pick him up.  We use Tide Free detergent and run a double rinse cycle on all of his laundry, so that's a definitely possibility...  His crib bedding at the daycare gets washed with everything else though, and he sleeps on that without troubles.  Wonder if the shirt getting wet playing outside might have transferred something?

Do they make their meals from scratch? If not is it possible there could be cross contamination issues?

They do make their meals from scratch, and the cook is aware of Dylan's allergies and is very accommodating.  She has a tub of his margarine that she uses to grease the pans, for example, and on pizza days makes him a special pizza with no cheese, or on fettuccine day she'll separate some pasta and chicken before she adds the sauce to everyone else's.  She is very diligent:  One pizza day she even called me the day before to let me know that she had bought a different sauce accidentally that had cheese in it, and would I like to bring some sauce in from home so that she could use it for Dylan.

Cross contamination - using the same spoon for someone else then for your LO?

I don't think so, they're really careful.  My SIL is Dylan's direct carer and she is almost more diligent than I am   Dylan has his own high chair that no one else uses, his own face cloths and utensils, so I think that is likely ok.

PP mentioned cross contamination.  With severe allergies, that can happen quite a bit.  Things like even throwing all his utensils/plates into a dishwasher with other plates/utensils with an offending food.

I never thought of that - they do just throw everything into the dishwashers.  Definitely another thing to consider, especially on days where Dylan's meal needs special preparation rather than when the general meal is safe for him.

Has a member of staff recently got a pet that your ds could be reacting to?

Another excellent thought...  Dylan is severely allergic to dog saliva (the first time he was licked by a dog he broke out into the worst hives I've seen, his eye swelled shut, and the actual white of his eye swelled ) though he seems to be ok with cats.  I will definitely ask if anyone in the baby/toddler rooms have gotten a dog recently.  Unfortunately, even if they did, I'm not sure what we could really do about it

Otherwise, is it something that the kids might be playing with? Do they go outside - is there a plant or something that the kids play with and might cause a reaction?

I don't think there's anything new in the yard, but I'm not sure so will definitely look into it.  I have lots of environmental allergies so it's reasonable to assume that he might too.  When we had the allergy testing done we only did foods and dust mites, so anything environmental is new territory...

Mashi - thanks so much for that information about the sunscreen!  It did seem so sudden and unlikely, but with your experience it definitely seems like more of a possibility.  I do have another sunscreen that I bought (an Aveeno one, we've had good luck with that brand for his eczema) so we'll try using that exclusively this weekend and see how we get on.

Might be something to ask the allergist - and it probably wouldn't hurt to call in the allergist on this one.

I definitely agree.  I actually tried to call before work this morning, but of course they're on holidays until August 3rd   (Sometimes it seems that doctors always take holidays when you truly need them).  So I will call then and see if I can't get in for a consultation, even without Dylan, just to see what he recommends that we do.

Thanks again for all the ideas and hugs.  My brain was so muddled that I didn't even think of so many of these possibilities.  Now I feel like I have a place to start   And this has become a bit of a novel so I will sign off now, but thank you all so much.

[ccg01]

I don't have any advice to give, but you've been so helpful and supportive I just wanted to send good thoughts your way!

[ireneee]

Hi,

Not sure if this will help but was speaking to some family y'day and this made me think of your LO

Apparently granddaughter had some random hives and they found out that it was due to her suncream, but only when it came into contact with water.
First instance, they weren't sure what happened, she was outside so suncreamed up and playing in the garden and then was covered in hives.
Second time, they were at the beach, suncreamed up, all fine until she went into the water and came up in hives.
This was using Garnier suncream.

Now we also had a random case of hives at nursery y'day and we have been using Garnier suncream. I know they played with gloop y'day as well so were cleaned up and then we had lots of hives on arms and face. So today, we're using a different suncream and I will have to do some experiments at home.

Anyway, this is just something else to consider!!!

Hope it helps!
Irene

[scarlettsmom]

Hey Vikki - just checking in to see how it's going??

Awesome new profile picture btw!!  =)

[~ Vik ~]

Thanks so much for checking in!

It seems that all those random hives were likely caused by his sunscreen.  We switched to the Aveeno Baby sunscreen (which is of course about 3x more expensive ) and we haven't had any more "unexplained" hives.  The only hives that couldn't be explained by his sunscreen were the ones on his chest/stomach, but that could be explained by him wearing a daycare shirt and it getting all wet - he is sensitive to a lot of detergents, so something may have transferred.

I did ask the workers in the infant and toddler rooms if any one of them had gotten a new dog recently, and no one had, but of course there are 10 children in each room and I couldn't ask their families as well.  Will definitely keep that in mind though and see if he gets hives more often around certain children.  It will be hard to know if it's due to a pet or other environmental allergen though, or just if they had milk on their cereal and Dylan came into contact with that. 

His week did go on to be much better.  He only had hives a couple of times, and both of them were very obviously due to dairy residue on another child.  For example, on Friday one of Dylan's friends was pretending to blow up a beach ball, and then Dylan did the same.  Dylan broke out into hives almost immediately.  The other child had had yogourt for breakfast half an hour earlier   But with a quick wash the hives were gone within about 15 minutes I was told, and didn't seem to bother him.  These episodes happen once or twice a week - just seems to go with the territory in a group daycare situation I suppose.

Not sure if I'm going to worry about calling the allergist when the office reopens on Tuesday since we've seem to have cleared up what the problem was.  If everything stays consistent I might just bring it up at his 2 year checkup in a couple of months.

Awesome new profile picture btw!!  =)

Thanks! DH took that while I was at work.  When I saw it I couldn't stop laughing!

[~ Vik ~]

Forgot to mention too - we think we've found the source of the mucousy poops:  GRAPES of all things.  Dylan loves them, wolfs them down like they're candy, so he gets them pretty frequently.  We'd been out of them for a little while, and then I bought some and he had them for snack.  He had a mucousy poop the next morning.  We went off them for a couple days, then I gave them for breakfast this morning.  He had a mucousy poop before bath.

Given that he doesn't seem to be in any discomfort, do you think that it's ok to still give him grapes on occasion?  I wouldn't give them all the time if they really are the cause (going to try one more time to be sure), but would once in a while be alright?

[~*Nicole*~]

Vikki-Just saw this now. I'm SO sorry D's allergies are such a pain and a mystery at times. Glad you seem to have worked out the sunscreen thing. On the grapes....If he likes them, doesn't seem to be in major discomfort, doesn't have blood in his stool, doesn't complain of tummy pain or even rear end pain when the affected stool comes out, I would think they're okay in small quantities every so often. BUT it may be something to ask his ped. in passing? Just to make sure things like that don't cause internal problems?