Allergic Reaction---what is it from?

[Mom2DTnEJ]

Hi. I'm new to this board, but I was directed here by a good friend.
My son had a weird allergic reaction last month (apr 11th to be exact).
My son is 3 1/2.
We went to my mom's house (she has a dog, and had had it since before my son was born, so I can't imagine it was the dog). When we left and started walking towards my van, my son started rubbing his eyes. On the drive home (a 5 minute drive) he was sneezing and saying he didn't feel good. He was getting congested.
By the time we got home he had what looked like hives on his face and near his eyes. Maybe around 10 or so total.
But they weren't the classic looking big huge splotchy ones. They just looked like raised bumps (small) with redness around the puffiness of them.
I raced in the house freaking out.
Gave him Benadryl, bathed him, washed his hands over and over, and within 30 minutes the rash was gone and he was fine.
I had my mom call the development to see if they has sprayed pesticides, because my son touched stuff in the grass on the way to the van.
They had sprayed 48 hours prior.

The 2nd reaction was May 1st. We were out and about having lunch and my son walked passed a restaurant with huge plants, then he saw a big dog at Starbucks and et him for like 5 minutes (Great Dane).
About 30 minutes later he had a reaction like the first one, though not as bad. This time there was no congestion and he didn't say he didn't feel good. He just had the hives and was rubbing his eyes.
Again I raced home, gave him Benadryl, and bathed him and washed our clothes.
All was clear in 15 minutes.
I found out (after calling) that the restaurant with the plants...well the plants were sprayed about an hour before my son touched them.

Ok, so now I carry Benadryl in my bag.

Ok, now the 3rd reaction (my son by this time is now taking claritin daily).
We were leaving my mom's again.
My son touched nothing outside (I made sure of that). We ate nothing at my moms. Just ran up to give her a DVD and left. She has the dog, remember?
On our way to the van the reaction returns.
Hardly bad at all. 2 hives (one on the cheek, one on the chin). No congestion, no complaining. I gave him Benadryl in the van. Bathed him at home. All was clear in 15 minutes.
Maybe the reaction wasn't bad because he is now on Claritin.

I don't know what to think about this.

We have a Pediatrician appt this Monday.

Anyone have a guess?

He eats the same stuff he always eats...nothing new or different...I haven't changed any detergents or soaps, etc.

Thanks.

[Caden's Mom]

my guess is the dogs. When you go to the pediatrician, I would also ask for an epi pen or a twin ject. We have two twin ject in our diaper bag and two at home, just in case, even though DS hasn't proven to be anaphylactic to any allergy.

It really doesn't matter if he has been exposed to dogs 100 times before with no reaction. An allergy can develop at any time. I personally didn't have any form of seasonal allergies until after my 21st birthday.

If your pediatrician orders a RAST test (this is favored by pediatricians and is a simple blood draw), also ask them to test it for seasonal allergies and the top five food allergies, just in case. They have to draw the blood anyway and they might as well rule out any other possible allergens. If your pediatrician doesn't order a RAST (I had to fight to have my son tested), insist on it.

[Mom2DTnEJ]

Epi-pen? Food allergies? Now I'm worried.
My son isn't even asthmatic.
My son eats peanut butter and jelly almost daily and has no reaction to it. He just had it yesterday.
Plus, his reactions aren't respiratory, they are just the breakout on his face.
But I will mention it to the Ped.
I just thought that epi-pens were for more serious conditions.

[Caden's Mom]

it is, but you never know when something will be serious. My ds is neither asthmatic nor has he shown any severe food reaction besides hives. Your son might not have any food allergies, but the way I figure if you have to have a test anyway, might as well rule out all that you can. And anaphylaxis can happen to any food, not just peanuts. One poster here knows someone who is anaphylactic to milk.

Don't be worried. Food allergies aren't really that bad. We're allergic to dairy, egg, tomato, strawberry, and avocado here and we survive

[Missy]

One poster here knows someone who is anaphylactic to milk.

Anaphylaxis to dairy really isn't *that* uncommon. My son is ana on contact, and several other moms here have kids who are anaphylactic to dairy.

Mom2DTnEJ--There are actually 8 top food allergies that are typically tested--wheat, eggs, dairy, soy, peanuts, nuts, fish and shellfish.

I'd be inclined to believe it's the dog, too. That seems to be the most common element. But, it wouldn't hurt to test beyond that, to be safe. Hives generally indicate a systemic reaction, which means it could advance to an anaphylactic response. If you see facial swelling, that same swelling could be occurring unseen in his airways. It's just better to be safe.

[LovinLiviLou]

There's a fair amount of thought out and about about allergy "load." Meaning that a small amount of something of one substance might not set someone off, but add to it other allergens and it might. This is different from anaphalytic reactions, so I'm not saying that this holds for everyone, but I do think the load theory holds for some people, like myself. For example, in a non-allergy season for me (i.e. dead of winter), I can be around a cat no problem. In spring, when the pollens are crazy, I can't get around a cat or even eat certain foods without a reaction. The theory is that your body can only process out so much of what it deems "toxic" so if the overall load is less, your son might be able to handle dogs no problem. But if you add to it seasonal pollens and pesticides, it might have set him off. And then once you have a reaction, some people seem more sensitive to that same trigger. Just a thought -