Out of the blue Hives

[SuburbanHippie]

Yesterday, my DS (no known allergies) broke out into hives on his hands, forearms, feet, lower leg, back of his thighs (huge hives there) and a little bit on his cheeks. It came out of nowhere. We were sitting at home and he said "itchy" (he's 27 months) and I looked at his swollen, red, hive covered body parts in horror. I gave him zyrtec (that we had on hand) and gave him a bath. They went away within an hour or two.

I don't know if it was something he touched or something he ate. I thought hives mostly formed from something he would have touched (because of where they were), but I'm not so sure. He drank a ton of watered down apple juice over the past 36 hours (he usually only drinks breast milk, but I've been busy volunteering) which he had only had on one previous occasion. Everything else he ate or touched has been something he's always come into contact with (didn't change detergents- make my own, I wash him with honey not soap).

I think this may have just been a freak incident, but I don't know. Any thoughts?

[SuburbanHippie]

Broke out into hives again a half hour ago. Soon after heading outside (and directly into the stroller). Not quite sure what to think now...

[WuWei]

Is there a cat or dog which may have been in the stroller, elsewhere he would have been touching?

Do you have benedryl on hand? I'd get an Rx for an EpiPen, and do skin prick testing asap to identify the culprit.

Also, get Apis 30c and vit C for lessening the hives. Epsom salt bath will help. But, I'd probably head to the ER.

Pat

[changingseasons]

Well, first I was going to say that the apple juice sounded like a likely culprit, but has he had any today?

Since the hives are so widespread, I would guess that it's an internal exposure (either something ingested or breathed in), not contact. So I would be looking at foods and environmental stuff- grasses/pollens, mold, animals, etc. And think back to the couple hours before he got the hives- hives can show up within seconds OR hours of exposure, so it's not necessarily from something that he just had or touched.

Originally Posted by WuWei

Do you have benedryl on hand? I'd get an Rx for an EpiPen, and do skin prick testing asap to identify the culprit.

Hives are a scary reaction, and can get worse with each exposure to an allergen, eventually leading to an anaphylactic reaction. I would call your ped asap and see if they can get you in TODAY to do blood testing at a minimum, and get a referral to an allergist for skin testing as well.

[WuWei]

Ds had poison ivy on the backs of his thighs (while he had whooping cough, no less). We identified that the cat (apparently with poison ivy on his fur) was sleeping in the stroller. The location of the rash was the key.

But, I agree with CS that large exposures are generally a systemic reaction.

Pat

[mbbinsc]

My son started breaking out in hives in first grade. I had thought it was related to exposure to latex gloves but it never happened again. It was around this time of year and he was in an internal classroom at school. I think it was that environment as it never happened again. The classroom had to have had a mold issue or something. Just something else to consider.

[SuburbanHippie]

I gave him zyrtec again (it's all we have on hand) as soon as we came in and the hives were gone within 15 minutes. He hadn't had any apple juice today, just breast milk and as far as food it was a couple bites of my eggs, homemade toast with strawberry jam, and two homemade cookies. Lots of allergen filled foods. The hives today were worse on his cheeks, but better everywhere else (1 on his hand, 1 on his thigh). I'll make an appt for the allergist (we've seen him before for DD, we took her in for milk testing once- came out neg). If the hives return, we'll head for the ER. We're still trying to find a primary care physician that won't kick us out due to non-vaxing.

Thanks for all your help.

[mamafish9]

Some people get hives in reaction to salicylates or histamines... and apples and strawberries are both really high in both.

So I totally support PP views that you need testing pronto and an epi-pen, in case this is a systemic ana reaction. But after that, consider that it's possible all the apple juice overwhelmed his body's ability to process sals or histamines or both (they're "bucket" type reactions, and you got the rash/hives as a result (cheeks are the first thing affected for lots of people). That would be good to know if it is, so you can keep it in mind as your little guy starts to eat more solid foods.

[luminesce]

Hives, especially recurring ones, are usually not idiopathic. It is likely a systemic reaction and could escalate quickly. I'd eliminate peanuts, eggs and milk from both of your diets until you can get into see the doctor for blood/skin tests. And if they come back, watch for signs of anaphylaxis.

https://health.google.com/health/ref/Anaphylaxis

Hives are scary.