Monday, September 14, 2009

Erythema Multiforme (minor)

Poor little dude. My pitiful baby leopard, Ethan.


These pictures were from yesterday morning at Grampy and Grammy's house in Austin. Saturday afternoon, Ethan had awoken from his nap with what looked like a mild rash on his face. It wasn't anything major so I gave him some Benadryl and it cleared up within minutes. Sunday morning when got him out of his Peapod Travel Bed again, he had this ridiculous rash with hives ALL OVER his body--he was covered from head to toe!





So, after about 1 to 1.5 hours of being medicated with Benadryl again, the rash had not cleared up at all---so I decided to take him to the clinic in Austin (afterall, we had a 3 hr drive ahead of us and I wanted to make sure that it was in fact, an allergic reaction to something. We were thinking it was his Peapod- randomly after 1.5 yrs of use). We waited for 3 LOOOONG hours with other kids covered in "swine flu masks" (neato) and were FINALLY seen by a doc. She quickly passed us off as an allergic reaction and told me that I had done everything right and to keep feeding him Benadryl every 4 hrs. (Hmm...I'm not so sure about that, "If he received Benadryl 3 hours ago, the rash should be clearing up by now dontcha think?" Ugh. anyway)

So, we dose up poor Ethan again with another round of Benadryl and get ready to head home. During this entire time, E is not acting sick or itching at all- which just BAFFLES me. (A little dopey from the meds, but that's about it). As we get closer to home, I notice that the hives are getting worse---we give him his next round of Benadryl when we are about an hour away from our house. By this time it is pitch black outside and I am driving--staring at E in the rearview mirror every couple of minutes--I can see that it is getting worse and worse. Once we reach our casa and get him out of the car, into the light (around 9:30pm)- his body was breathtaking.





Pictures can't really do it justice. He was completely swollen with huge hives from head to toe---the little blisters had formed ginormous patches of red, HOT, puffy skin lesions. Again, Benadryl was not even TOUCHING the little man's "leprosy"...Something wasn't right and I did not feel comfortable putting him down to sleep, so we headed up to the ER. (Lots of one-on-one time with Mama yesterday! Woo hoo)

E bud was SUCH a trooper after missing his afternoon nap and being dragged around all day to various med clinics. The cute little spotted guy got lots of sympathy love from the nurses and Auntie Liz who came up to sit with us. As soon as the doc walked in he knew exactly what it was: Erythema multiforme (which I had NEVER heard of). One of his daughters even has it! I was SO relieved to find out what it was---its some type of virus that people pick up for no rhyme or reason. It is NOT contagious (thank you GOD!) and will disappear within 1-3 WEEKS! (yikes- not so good for professional pics this Sunday, but hey- at least we will always be able to tell Ethan and Andrew apart, right? lol. not funny. well, kinda) This virus is just SO weird to me and looks horrible for the little guy---but the only meds to give is OTC Motrin if he begins scratching or develops a fever. (Sometimes it is a precursor for Strep throat or some other type of infection)

I read up on EM- and it is usually caused by some viral, bacterial, or fungal infection. One thing stuck out in particular---COLD SORES. Well--BINGO! Ethan had a cold sore on his lip last week and whallah---lesions all over his body. Apparently this is probably going to happen every time he gets a cold sore. POOR BUDDY! Any of you guys ever heard of this? But thank God nothing serious---and thank God I followed up instead of dosing him with Benadryl every 4 hours for no reason at all! (tsk, tsk)

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67 comments:

Brittany Wardlow said...

Bless his little heart! I am glad it was nothing serious and even better, not contagious!!! Hope he gets all better soon!

Karolyn said...

Poor little Ethan! Sounds like he was such a trooper though. Hope it clears up soon for you all!

T said...

Poor guy! That looks awful!! Thank goodness for it not being contagious though!!

AJWolverine said...

I wish I had some experience to share with you, but I just want to say good for you for following your maternal instincts when the first Dx didn't feel right! We despise urgent care because we almost always end up at the pediatrician's office the following Monday with a different, more fitting Dx. Seems like urgent care doctors tend to be inexperienced and form their Dx immediately upon entering the room without listening to the full story or history. If only they could see the follow up to know how often they are wrong.

Cori said...

One of my co-worker's daughter had this same thing not too long ago. It didn't go away for about 3 weeks and she is 4 yrs old. She said that H didn't scratch or anything. HOpefully he feels better soon :)

Carrie said...

poor little guy!

You should write a letter to the urgent care telling them know their diagnosis was wrong so that they know for future spotted kiddos!

Misty said...

poor little man! so glad you wrote an update. I was praying for you guys last night. Very glad it is something "minor". Huge hugs!
Luv ya,
Misty

Terri said...

Poor little guy! Glad you got an answer as to what was causing it! Hope he clears up some before pictures!

Charity Donovan said...

OMG - Poor lil' guy!!!! So glad he'll be back to normal soon!!! That is (just a little) funny about the pics...I can hear it now "Yeah E, you ARE the one with the SPOTS in that picture!" lol!

Unknown said...

Poor Ethan! My first born had EM after he had an allergic reaction to Omnicef. It was horrible! He actually went lame- couldn't walk cause it hurt so bad. I totally freaked out! It did go away, but he looked horrible. Hope it clears up much sooner than 3 weeks!!!

The Anglin Family said...

Poor man!! Sorry you had to wait so long @ the Dr's ofc and had to go back. I have so been there!! Ugh. My littlest Camden has that. And ehen he was about one he broke out in that and it was horrific looking so I took him to the ER. And it has happened twice since then and hes five so thats not too bad!! :-) It just looks so miserable!!

Jara said...

First sorry little guy has this.. and hope he gets rid of it soon..

Second.. THANK YOU!.. Both of my twins have had this at different times.. and no one was ever able to tell us what it was.. just give them zytec and let it run it's course.. I'm so thankful to finally have an answer! I will definitely be bringing this information to my Dr!!

The Drama Mama said...

Poor Buddy! Gosh, he is such a trooper! He is so precious, Suz...I just want to squeeze him after seeing all those pictures...poor baby! Praying for sweet Ethan (and of course, Mama!). Lots of HUGS and prayers, friend!

Britt :) said...

Way to go Nurse Suz. You've still got it! You could have been running that ER.

Sending hugs to your lil ones and extra kisses to E.

Britt :) said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
jag said...

Suz! I had NO IDEA! I mean, the picture mail did not do the hives justice! You must have been so scared. So thankful he'll be okay. Hugs!

Elyse said...

Oh my goodness...so not fair for Mr. Ethan! I have never heard of this before. He just looks MISERABLE! Poor buddy! If he does start to itch, see if an aveeno bath helps.
~Elyse

Alissa said...

Oh poor little kiddo! That looks so uncomfortable... I've never heard of it before but my little guy (about 20 months at the time) was diagnosed with a weird fungal ailment on his head last fall - it was dx'ed by a dermatologist and treated with a special shampoo and oinment and it healed in the 5-6 wks timeframe that the dr. gave us....so there is hope that Ethan will be all better in 1-3 weeks. It never ceases to amaze me what weird things kids can get!

The Cochran Crew said...

How in the world can a dude with spots like that still look so stinkin cute and happy that I am inclined to eat his polka dotted cheeks off!!! So stinking cute!!! Hannah Noelle had Roseola one time and looked similiar to that. She looked like something out of a friggin horror movie and was not near as cute as little Mr. E!!! Love ya Suz, you are such a kick tail mom!

Michael and Hannah said...

I my goodness!!! Poor guy! Glad it will clear up on its own. Can't believe you had to wait 3 hours to be given bad info! boo!

Twinmommy2boys said...

Looking at that is making ME itchy! I think one of my sons had the same thing when he was about 1 1/2, however I don't remember the name the doctor called it, but it looked the same. Poor little guy.

Our Journey said...

that looks exactly like what my daughter had not too long ago!! we went from dr to dr to allergy specialist and on and on!! it lasted for about 4 weeks then came back for a brief period.. it never bothered her!! just me :)

Charla (SHar-la) said...

I've never heard of the EM, but I do get cold sores ALL THE TIME! I will tell you if you know one is coming up, the BEST meds I have found for them is called Releev. I have taken EVERYTHING...OTC, Rx, vitamins, creams, etc...and this is the only thing that works effectively. The only thing that might be hard for him is it is a liquid you put on the lip at the site of the sore and then let it dry.

I have taken Rx pills, but I had to take them 5x a day. They worked, but I just couldn't keep up (I'm SO bad with pills).

Anyway, hope the little guy gets to looking better soon and I'll pray for good air-brushing...HA!

Love ya, girl and I hereby award you the "Mommy Knows Best" award!

Unknown said...

poor dude..i have never seen or heard of it before...learn something new everyday. My kid's have had 5th's disease and hand, foot, mouth disease but not this one!! hope he is rash~free soon...much love and blessings from ga~erin

Anonymous said...

Okay so I'm sitting here scratching while I read your blog. I feel so sorry for Ethan! He looks like he should feel miserable but no, he's all smiles. I hope it clears up before your family pictures and so thankful it's not contagious.
Cathy in Frisco

Keely Hollern said...

OH MY GOSH!! My little boy had the EXACT same thing last October...it popped up on a Sunday, and when Benadryl wouln't work we took him to ER...Dr. there had no clue and basically said the same thing--just keep giving him benadryl every 4 hours! When it didn't get better, I took him to our pediatrician who didn't know what it was either!!?? But this definitely looks like what he had! It seemed to get worse with heat (nap time, rides in car seat, etc.) didn't itch or bother him though (??!) and cleared up on it's own in a few days (they put him on steroids though)...so glad you posted about it! If it ever happens again, I'll know what it is!

Laura Ann said...

SOOO glad you posted this and that I now have a name for it. My 2 year old had this in the spring and ER sent us home with the benedryl treatment. BUT, when he woke up fom a benedryl induced nap and his lips and eyes were swollen I wasn't taking a chance of his airway getting closed up. This time he had a fever and we were able to get him into the doctor, they never told us that name though but did say it was caused by a respitory virul infection and put him on breathing treatments, some antibiotic, and benedryl for the itch. Hope your little man gets to feeling better soon, for sure this is one you will always remember when the pictures come back ;-)

HoundDogMom said...

Suz, I read your blog quite frequently. I have never had or seen anything like the rash little Ethan has. But I do get a ton of cold sores. The one thing I have found of the years that works really well is Lysine. As soon as I take one when I feel the cold sore starting. It dries it up with 24 hours. I have heard that if you take one of these a day you will never get a cold sore again. I can't validate that because I am terrible with taking pills, and these are horse pills. You might want to check with your doctor about giving Ethan Lysine for his cold sores. I am so very thankful I don't break out like Ethan after a cold sore. Oh, all your kids are very adorable and love the stories. Sherri

Stephanie said...

Poor little guy! I have never heard of that. So glad it is minor and will go away soon! I (couldnt help but laugh about your comment about family pics!) ;)

The Bauer's said...

I read your blog often but have never commented until now. My daughter, who is 3, got something similar - they never said it was EM - but it looks a lot like what E has. She would break out - same red whelps/hives - starting at her feet and it would kind of travel up her body and get worse as the day went on. She would always tell me that it hurt really bad. It lasted 3-4 days and she did this 3 times in a 4 month time frame. Her pediatrician thought it was allergies and sent her to a pediatric allergist where he then told us it was viral. I had to give her a 1/2 tsp of Zyrtec every morning for 2 weeks to make sure that is what it was. It hasn't come back since the last episode in January.

Lani said...

Poor Ethan! But good job to you for following up and figuring out what it was- thanks for posting this, it's good to know! Hope it clears up quickly!

Amanda said...

My son had this when he was about 6 months old. I was so worried but the doctor said it would clear up on its own in a few days. By the third day it was SO much better. Hope Ethan's clears up soon, too!

Anonymous said...

My husband gets EM related to cold sores, as well! I feel such sympathy for your poor little darling.
My husband is miserable when he has "the rash" as we call it at our house.
Forgive me if I'm wrong, but my understanding is that EM IS an allergic reaction of sorts, an autoimmune OVER-response to, in this case, the virus that is causing the cold sores (HSV I).
I always have my husband take antihistamines, like Benadryl, when he has the rash. Additionally, we've started dosing him with Valtrex to try and prevent the cold sores, but I don't think Valtrex is approved for such a petite patient as Ethan.
He also takes L-Lysine supplements, just for kicks, but again I doubt thats recommended for a little person.
Poor baby. I'm glad it doesn't seem to be bothering him, at least per the pictures!
I love reading about your precious family, and I'm positive you know best. I hope it goes away soon!

Moni Graf said...

Yep.....welcome to the EM club, lil E! You'll be joining Laine Graf there.
Laine's started out mainly on his legs and groin area. Despite my "home nursing" remedies of benadryl, hydrocortisone cream and Lotrimin....it was still getting worse. Finally conceded that this rash was over my head and took him in to see our pedi. The doc said it was erythema multiforme and started him on orapred. But the story thickens.....rash CONTINUED to get worse and spread to his arms and chest (of course, just in time for our quad pic). By this time, he was scratching at it more and acting uncomfortable. Took him back in 2 weeks from the last time and doc thinks it looks more like a severe atopic eczema exacerbation. Hmmmmmmm. Related? Who knows. We changed soaps to the cetaphil stuff, started Laine on Xyzal allergy meds and the 2 month rash started disappearing. He's good now, but that was a long 2 months! Laine's always been our sicky one who needs breathing treatments when he gets sick, and that's probably all related somehow, too.
Sorry to go on and on....I probably could have just emailed this to you, but oh well!

Love the Steeces to Pieces!
Moni

Rachel said...

Hey Suz... sounds like an adventurous day! I get cold sores on my lip frequently as well and I asked my doctor to prescribe Zovirax. It works amazingly fast.... maybe that would help prevent it!

Quad Squad! said...

Wow, Suz! That is pure craziness! I've never heard of that before! I'm SO glad that it isn't serious! Prayers for you guys!

The McNulty Family said...

Poor Baby! Suz, those pictures are sooooo SAD :( I couldn't see how BAD in that pic you sent my phone... but I had an idea. Poor baby, I just wanna hug him!!

I'm so glad he isn't feeling bad.. just looks SAD :(. Hug that little angel for me.

I love you with all my heart and miss you so much.

XOXO
Gen

Anonymous said...

Suz-
I am a blog stalker since you were pregnant. :-) Wanted to share my experience with EM. I have this occasionally (3 times in the past 15 months), and mine is related to the herpes virus (cold sore type). It was just diagnosed this time (the 3rd time), and I am now taking a Valtrex taper to try to put the virus in remission. Mine is very bizarre in that it comes back in the EXACT same spots each time (right eye, left hand, right upper lip, and a few others). So, I say that to say do not be alarmed if it comes back EXACTLY the same each time. Hope he never gets it again, but at least you know it is not something major, major.

PS - I can't believe I said I carry the herpes virus on your blog! It made me feel better when my doctor told me that over 80% of people carry it but most never even know it.

M. Long
llong11@sc.rr.com

Corrie said...

Suz,
My mom has had "episodes" of the same thing a few times in the past year or so. They call it the same thing, but it has been pretty mysterious! They've had to give her IV infusions to get the intense itching under control. I'm glad that E hasn't been too bothered by itching and I'm SUPER glad it isn't contagious!

Bella said...

Suz~ I'm a blog follower also and the minute I saw the photos I knew exactly what pool E was going threw! Every single time I get sick this happens to me...I get EM..it's the only way some people's bodies can handle and rid it's self of the viruse...It is horribly misserable and can make your body ache really bad for a good week after the spots are gone! But other than that they can get worse just when you think you've rid yourself of them wham you wake up and there they are and double the amount!! Cool oatmeal baths help if they start to burn or itch!
Bless his heart..I hope he's feeling better soon..
ami

Anonymous said...

Suz,

Poor E! Reading through the comments, it sounds like you've gotten a ton of helpful advice. I have nothing to add except for a quick warning about Valtrex - it can make you feel just terrible. I took it once after a doctor misdiagnosed me, and I had splitting headaches, muscle soreness, etc. So unless the doctor is insistent that he try it, I'd consider it a last-ditch thing.

Hang in there!
AW

Fulton Quads said...

AMAZING! I tell you that I think they find out new & interesting viruses after we became momma's to these wonderful kiddos of ours! If there is a CRAZY illness out there we tend to get it! LOL! SO happy he is not contagious! SO sad that he may have this EACH & EVERY time he gets a cold sore! UGH! Take Care Momma! Hugs!
Love, Cathy & her quads

Alyssa said...

Poor guy! I hope he feels better soon! That looks and sounds exactly like what I've gotten each spring the past 2 years. Huge hives covering my entire body that benadryl doesn't touch, and it lasted about 3 weeks each time. Even my palms and soles of my feet were covered and itchy. This spring, it showed up the same day I came down with an ear infection and my dr. dismissed it as an allergic reaction.

Anonymous said...

Poor little thing! Just a heads-up on a great clinic in austin - www.afterhousekids.com

Our pediatric group runs it and it is fabulous - never a wait and so much better than other clinics or the ER if it is a minor-emergency.

I know you are in austin a lot so I thought I would make sure you knew about it.

Anonymous said...

Hi Suz,

I have been following your blog since I fournd out I was having twins last October. I found you kind of through a blog trail from angie orange to the texas triple and then to you.. I carried the twins to 38 weeks thanks to bedrest.. I am trying to get in shape and get my twin skin back in shape. The girls are 2 months old now..Do you have any tips how to get back in shape after you have been so inactive. And how did you fit in exercise when the quads were little.

Thanks, I love reading your blog.. it inspires me.

Heather Brown
momfamilybrown@aim.com

The Budget Mommy: said...

I am sure you've been overloaded with advice, but I wanted to throw in my two cents. I got the cold sore virus for the first time when I was very early pregnant (like 3 weeks and couldn't know it yet) and it caused such a severe onset that I was in AGONY. I didn't get any external rashes but the inside of my mouth and throat got really yuck. I will spare you the details, but suffice it to say I couldn't eat because of the pain and lost a lot of weight. What stopped it was chewing b12 tablets. Every time it starts to happen again, I take b12 and it goes away within a few hours. I use Jarrow Formula 5000 mg Methyl B12, and while it's pricey MAN IS IT WORTH IT! It tastes fabulous too. I really hope this helps!

The Budget Mommy: said...

And by the way..Thank you so much for posting this. I had no idea this was an actual problem that other people had with a name and everything! I just always thought my immune system went haywire when I got pregnant and created its own special little problem. Glad to know I am not as unique as I thought! =)

Leslie said...

Oh my! My 10-month old daughter was just diagnosed with this today. Isn't it awful? He looks exactly the same as my daughter.

Anonymous said...

My son had it several times last year. It looked so awful. I felt so bad for him. Woohoo, he hasn't had it this yr at all.

Anonymous said...

Thanks so much for posting this. You don't know me but my 2 year old has the exact same thing right now and I was just searching for some info on the internet. Good to know others have dealt with it too.

Unknown said...

My 11-mo old son is recovering from EM now. Doc misdiagnosed as hives, but ER doc "spotted" (ha!) it as EM right away. We, too, found that heat made him more miserable. Baths, blankets while sleeping, rides in the car, etc, made him feel worse. So he is mostly undressed most of the time while he recovers. Tylenol and Motrin helped with the pain. Benadryl helped with the itching and helped him sleep. Steroids (prescribed by the doctor) helped with the swelling, which was so bad that he couldn't walk. Happily, it is getting better now, and he is starting to act like himself on Day 3 of this saga.

prettyinink0402 said...

My son had it when he was 4 months old, he broke out 2 separate times...it spreads & changes so quickly it's insane! The second time he got it his eyes swelled completely shut...we didn't get any meds for him or anything...so we kept giving him tylenol & motrin cause he was miserable & just screaming. He hasn't broken out again & he is almost 3 years old now!

cara said...

My one year old just got diagnosed with this tonight, only hers was caused by a reaction to medication...She looks horrible and it just keeps getting worse. We were told to watch for lesions on the eyes and mouth because that could be a sighn of EM major.

Maxine said...

I found your blog after endlessly searching the internet for some information on erythema multiforme. My 3 1/2 year old got it last Tuesday and was misdiagnosed at the ER with an allergic reaction and then the next day when I felt like something wasn't right we went to his pediatrician who told me it was this. It keeps on disappearing and reappearing in different forms and different extremes and seems like it is now just coming after he's been running around outside. What I am curious about is has your son got it again now that it's been a year and a half that he first got it? I keep wondering when this is going to go away and if it is something we will be dealing with for the rest of his life! I know you don't have those answers but I would like to know if your son has got it again and how often? Thanks...it's all new to me!

Maxine

Anonymous said...

My 13 month son had just recovered after 6 weeks of battling EM. It is such a hard thing to watch your baby suffer with. :( I was hoping his immune system was going to get a break, but I fed him Mac N cheese today and he had an instant breakout all over his body. Coincidence or food allergy???? It's so hard to know. My pediatrician had prescribed us a oral steroid but I really don't want to put in on that again so soon. The docs recommended benedryl and/or liquid allergy meds but I want to do what is best for him. I'm afraid that having this back to back is really going to be so hard on his little immune system and I am afraid of it leading into SJS (major) if he keeps getting exposed. (sigh). I'm so frustrated he is so sick. Any mommy suggestions? I think I am going to try the motrin one of you mommies recommended. :)

Anonymous said...

My Son is 7 and Tuesday morning 1/3/12 he began to get some bumps on his face. I thought they might be mosquito bites because he was outside with his dad the day B4 and dad said the bugs were bad. As time passed I noticed his entire body was covered with what looked like a combination of 3 kinds of rash. I too gave benadryl. The rash was much faster and stronger than the benadryl. I took him to the E.R because I worked in pediatrics and having 2 older children , I had never seen this kind of rash B4. The E.R Dr. pretty much blew me off and made me feel like a new over reactive mom. They said it was nothing more than a contact dermatitis , asked if I changed my soap etc. We went home with no more info then we went in with.I tried Oatmeal baths and I couldnt get ahead of this rash. First Thing Thursday morning I had him at his Pediatrician. As soon as he looked at my son he said it was Erythema Multiforme (minor). He gave my son a prescription for a steroid ( to help with the itching ) and advised us to continue the benadryl. Here it is Friday afternoon. The rash is much better but as soon as we r due for the Benadryl ( B4 time) the rash starts back. It streaks and appears in all shapes ,places etc. My son gets it really bad on his face and that is scary. Today he woke with his face swollen and breath like putrid sulfer. I called the Dr. and he said to give the meds a little more time. If things do not get better by tomorrow, I was asked to take my son in to the office to c the other physician in the practice for a 2nd opinion. It is very scary given the closeness between the onset symptoms of the Erythema Multiforme Minor v/s Major. Not much to tell them apart in the beginning but they are def. on opposite ends of the spectrum. I wish u and your little man a fast easy recovery. I will keep u posted if my guys' situation does not improve. Thanks for the blog!! not that I enjoy the suffering of your child but its nice to talk to other moms dealing with the same thing...... : ) * Lacey

jgriffeth89 said...

Omg. Me and my 7 month old just got out of a 3 day stay in the hospital bc of erythema multiforme! Same happened to us. First sign was not eating right or sleeping well. (Took to the dr said it was just a stomach bug) second sign was high fever (dr then said it was an ear infection so we got put on amoxicillin) next sign was vomitting which she choked on called 911 and they said its just the mucus running). But she had an alergic reaction to penicillin (you done get erythema multiforme very often from a penicillin reaction). The next morning we woke up and she had red blemishes on her face hands feet and a little on her back and stomach. Dr said it was hand foot mouth disease. Took her home she was MISERABLE with a 103.7 temp so we went to the e.r. ran tests and our first night they still werent sure. Second night we finally got an answer! They could tell by the targets starting to form on the back. We r now on singulair, benadryl, and a steroid. BE CAREFUL WITH THE MOTRIN! Our dr gave it to her in the hospital but doesnt want her on it now at home bc it can mask a high fever and if a high fever comes back it could be a sign of erythema multiforme MAJOR! Shes been going on with this for about a week now so hopefully it gets better and we dont have to worry about sjs:/ her spots look EXACTLY like ethan's spots! Its rough watching my 7mo old go through it. She is just miserable!!

jgriffeth89 said...

And it IS heat activated. Heat on clothes rubbing or cuddling on you or carseats all make it worse! My daughters back was/is completely covered in the hives.. you could even see skin color just red. It is so sad! And looks extremely painful!

Anonymous said...

I read that EM minor doesnt progress into major and it isnt related to SJS. My son just got dignosed and that is my biggest fear, our Dr. tells me not to worry.

Anonymous said...

Be careful with that singulair my baby changed after that, nightmares, crazy, craying so much, crawling up the wall, she is adhd and that didnt work well. I couldnt put my finger on what was going on until next year when she was put on again and 2 days later she was out of herself. When I got online i crief over so many reports from parents with the same situation as ours. Watch your kid if anything change in his behavior read about it online. Good luck!

Renata Carneiro said...

Hi Suzanne,

Loved your blog!!! While researching on EM found this and your writing kept me interested i couldnt help myself but not only read the whole story but all the comments and because there is so many real life experiences it added up a lot of info that I didnt have. So in high hopes that it helps other I am leaving here my story and experience with EM.

My little guy is 3 and it had been over 6 months maybe a year that i have been noticing circles ( bulls eye ) in the sole of his feet, i could barely see it. He also has been complainting of his eyes and pain in his feet and legs. I have been complainting to his pediatrician but since sge couldnt see it. It would go away very fast. I took pictures, she would say its hives. He is an allergic kid. In June he had a bad case of Hand Mouth and Foot
disease, the skin ob his fingers and toes came off. And since the coxsackie virus stays in the body for weeks even months, i think he is still having some symptoms.
Last week after having been sick with a viral infection, bronquitis, being on Augmentin ( amoxicilin +...), prednisolone, oral steroids and nebulizer pulmicort+xopenex. He got over what he was on all that medication for even had his flu shot, i showed his dr his hands with some rash and we always had the same conclusion hives due to allergy whenever he had any infection/ bug in his body. Went back home. Few days later this kid woke up with the same rash this time stronger on his hands, feet, legs and body. For the very first time she saw him with the rash really and she said right in the spot Erythema Multiforme. I didnt understand what it really meant until the next morning when i try to read about. Its a disease where the skin has an allergic reaction to infections or medcine, the list is huge. But number virus that causes is herpes and second is something pneumonia and antibiotics and so many other medicine can also caused. I freaked out since this kid has been on so many courses of antibiotic and steroids and so many infections since he was born. Big sister does a good job bringing hone all the bugs from school you name it. And he has been in day care for year and a half. We had a lot of blood work done everything came back normal his doctor told me not to worry he seems to have a very mild case. But I am so scared this thing is bombing his body and immune system. Or could progress into something more serious. A week later the rash is gone and sick again on meds again. And they say it gets worse as they grow. Ohhhh motherhood, dont we love it!!! Most of all even the tantrums but not seing our little people sick. I hope my info helps anyone.

Peace and Love.

Benji's mommy

Kim said...

My daughter just finished her second attack in less than 6months, the second was worse than the first. Fever and a horible rash that then turned in to the bull's eye rash. Also,she was left with light bruising on her abdomen which our doctor reports can happen. Unsure what triggered this attack the first was possibly medication. Does anyone know how long we can expect this to keep happening?

Anonymous said...

poor little guy! I just wanna share my experience with EM.. my first encounter with this was when I was 18 years old and now I'm 28:(, I though it was just a child hood disease that will go away after one episode. it was the most painful thing I've ever felt that lasted for 2 weeks. so I survive that episode but a year later I had another one while I'm at my summer job, it bothered me but I couldn't do anything because I needed the money cause I'm about to go to college, so survive that again and went to college. 3 months after the last episode I had another one, this is the time that made me quit my dreams of graduating. I pretty much gave up on everything because of this but went on with my life went on vacation 6 months and even a year. but what I notice is that whenever I go in a vacation somewhere hot and tropical. I notice the rash was very minimal maybe only under 10 rashes compare to hundreds when I'm in Canada and back home I never get cold sores where my mouth is really nasty inside and out. The weather makes a big factor. That's why I kept going back in my homeland since 2006 to 2011... so let me get back to my episode and tell you all about it.. so in 2006 of August I had one very minor and no cold sore and that's back home in my country... 2007 minor again and it's back home... 2008 was really bad maybe because I'm in Canada again and again a bad episode in 2009 in Canada. 2009 was my last episode until after 5 years December 2013 during winter a bad episode.. and then today April 2014 I'm dealing with it again... this is probably my 10th episode since getting it in 2004 ten yearz after:(... so many times I almost gave up on my life everytime I get EM but right now I have a little 2 years old boy that's keeping me strong

Rebecca said...

I also have a son who has had this twice now. I'd love to know your answers to Maxine's questions. So worrisome.

Anonymous said...

I was googling for EM and chanced upon your blog. Hope things are fine for your sweetie. I feel the pain as my boy is in this 4th week of similar outbreak.


I have seen a few doctors and none has given me a satisfactory answer on how to manage it. One of the paed identified it as EM and told me to leave it.

Is it really true that we cant do anything about it ? Eg gluten-free diet ?

My heart aches seeing my toddler going thru this......

Unknown said...

I stumbled on your blog as I was trying to figure out what's going on with my son. His rash is very similar to your son. We just got back from the ER and they diagnosed him with Erythema multiforme minor. His rash is so massive and only getting worse. Did you son end up developing a fever? What were the course of treatment? They told me it will get worse before it gets better, did that happen with your son? (I'm losing my mind and it's breaking my heart to see him like this) .... Also the funny thing (not funny ha ha) but weird coincidence (we also have professional pictures scheduled in 2 days)

Suzanne said...

Hi! I'm so sorry for your little man. Yes, my son had a fever and looked horrible! But it went away very quickly and he's never had it again!!

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