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Allergic Reaction to Amoxicillin: Rash, Hives, Oh My! Home Remedies

Allergic Reaction to Amoxicillin Amoxicillin Rash — My back

At 27 years old, I’d never taken an antibiotic. So, when I came down with strep throat complicated by an ear infection, it was my first experience with them. My doctor prescribed me Amoxicillin. Within 12 hours I was thrilled with the results. My throat and ear pain vanished. There was no more weird washing machine sound or difficulty swallowing. However, seven days into my ten-day prescription my back started to itch. Within minutes it was covered in thick hives.

My husband ran to the store to get me some Benadryl, and within the ten minutes he was gone they’d covered my entire core and arms. That was how I found out I was allergic to Amoxicillin, but it didn’t stop there. The Benadryl seemed to stop the hives progression at first, but they didn’t go away even though I stopped taking my pills. 4 am that night the itching was so bad it woke me up. The hives had spread to my legs. They were on the soles of my feet and the palms of my hands. I took more Benadryl and went back to sleep.

When I woke up four hours later they were on my face, in my ears, and down my throat, everywhere. I went to the doctor and was prescribed an oral steroid, but my hives still became worse before they got better. If you’re reading this, itching at an allergic reaction to Amoxicillin or another antibiotic, it pains me to inform you even with steroids you likely have three to four days to suffer. To ease that suffering, I’d like to share what helped my Amoxicillin rash.

Don’t itch!

Oh, I know, that is so very easier said than done, but when you itch at hives they spread. You’ll go from itchy patches to having entire areas of your body covered in full sheets of puffed red skin. Plus the itching damages your skin, causing more irritation and itching. Rub if you can’t help it rather than itch. A towel feels nice. A topical anti-itch cream can also be a major relief for Amoxicillin rash.

Keep it cool

If you’ve had hives, you know they exude heat. You may not have a fever, but your skin will feel hot to the touch. Nothing was more blissful to me during my Amoxicillin allergic reaction than standing out in the soft early spring snow of Alaska. Luke warm baths, cold compresses, or even just pressing your itchy palms against a cold glass feels great and relieves the itch. If you opt for the bath, consider mixing a bit of oatmeal in to soothe areas you’ve goofed and itched. Be careful though, heat is often painful on hives and can cause them to spread, don’t let your bath get too warm.

Wearing loose, breathable clothing can also be a great deal more comfortable, but try for options that cover areas you’re finding yourself itching without really thinking about it. The cloth will help prevent you from damaging your skin further.

Hydrate

The reaction won’t go away until whatever caused it is flushed from your system, in my case Amoxicillin. Drink plenty of water. It will keep you hydrated and help things clear up faster. If you are prescribed an oral steroid, it will also help with some side effects they can cause.

Within 48 hours my Amoxicillin rash began to go away, that was with the use of Benadryl and prescribed oral steroids. If you suffer an allergic reaction to an antibiotic, it’s important to stop taking the medication and see a doctor. First, to confirm the reaction is not the start of a more severe or even life-threatening reaction. Second, to confirm whatever the antibiotic was prescribed for was properly treated. Some people suffer allergic reactions quickly, while others, like me, don’t see any sign for days, a week, or according to my doctor, even after they’ve taken the entire prescription. There are alternate treatment regimes in most cases, if your dose was not sufficient to cure what ailed you. I hope in the meantime this information helps you. I certainly wish I’d have known it from day one of my Amoxicillin rash. Hang in there, and stop itching!

Wasp Sting and Bee Sting Treatment and Prevention for Kids

“Fly bug, mom! Fly bug!” My toddler, like many others of his age group, has always had a deep fascination for creepy crawlies. They are all bugs to him. Spider bugs, worm bugs, beetle bugs, and of course, fly bugs. The obvious problem is not all fly bugs are harmless. Before he was a year old, my son had already been stung three times, and things didn’t look good for a decrease in his toddler years. Bee sting allergies run in my family, so I worried he might get stung in the face or throat someday and end up with more than a boo-boo.

How can you can prevent kid wasp stings, hornet stings and bee stings?

Teach. The nice thing about bees, wasps, and hornets is they have a very distinctive appearance. Reading books about stinging bugs and doing art projects can help younger kids separate them from other bugs while learning to respect our environment. Then you can teach them that the stripped “fly bugs” are dangerous and should be left alone.

Bee proof. Next, your child’s primary play spaces should be bee-proofed, so to speak. Be sure to check your yard and house eaves regularly for the beginnings of hives. Keep trash receptacles tightly sealed, plant flowers away from your toddler’s play areas, and keep compost piles in other areas of the yard as well.

For indoor play, window and door screens can help tremendously. You may also consider setting traps. Simply take a plastic bottle, fill it about half way with a sweet liquid such as soda or beer, and set it on your windowsill or front porch. If you prefer you can also buy pre-made traps. Hornets and yellow jackets are attracted to the trap rather than the enticing smells in your home. This can also cut down on houseflies.

Dress safely. When your kiddo is going to be outside, avoid dressing them like a flower. No seriously, skip fragranced lotions, sun blocks, or shampoos and avoid bright colors such as yellow and red. Bees, wasps, and hornets are generally just out looking for food, if your child looks and smells like food, they’re more prone to be attractive to stinging bugs.

Snack safely. When outside, keep your child free of sweet stuffs. Pocket wet wipes are awesome in this department. Make sure that any drinks are capped. Fruit juice is particularly attractive to many types of stinging bugs.

What does wasp sting, hornet sting, or bee sting treatment entail?

No matter how many preventive measures you take, eventually your child will likely get stung anyway. Home sting remedies are bountiful and mostly wives tales. However, sadly, little actual scientific research has been done on the subject. What is known is you want to immediately remove the stinger if still present in the skin. How isn’t important, though many parents swear by flicking it out with a credit card.

Suggestions to ease pain after the stinger is removed include tobacco, baking soda, pennies, aspirin, meat tenderizer, onions, vinegar, Benadryl , honey, toothpaste, calamine lotion, papaya, hydrocortisone cream and ice. One study did find an aspirin paste to be ineffective and even extended the redness period. This same study found ice to be effective. Pennies for wasp and bee stings appears to be an illogical wives tale. One helpful man tried all of the suggested methods. He found toothpaste or calamine lotion applied to the sting after icing it worked best. Baking soda, meat tenderizer, papaya, hydrocortisone cream and vinegar were also effective. Honey was so-so. Benadryl , tobacco, and onion were the least effective.

No matter how your treat it keep an eye out for allergic reactions such as excessive swelling in areas not near the sting, hives, shortness of breath, trouble breathing, rapid pulse and dizziness. If you suspect an allergic reaction, seek medical attention immediately.

Peeling Nails or Nails Falling Off? Onychomadesis after Hand, Foot, and Mouth in Kids

First, my 6 year old lost a finger nail. I thought maybe he squished it or snagged it on something and just didn’t say anything. The next day, the nurse called me to ask if I knew about his finger. I thought it was the same one and said yes, but when he got home, I found he was missing yet another nail. The whole thing was just gone.

I assumed maybe he had brittle nails for some reason—iron deficiency maybe—and put him on a multi-vitamin. Fast forward about 3 days, my 2 year old’s entire big toe nail just falls off. No blood, no pain, it was just gone, like his nail peeled off. I looked at all three kids, and they all had nails peeling off! Alright, now I was freaked out. What the heck was happening? Was it a fungus? Why were my kid’s nails falling off?

Well, now we have to go back in time, to about a month ago, when my entire household had a bad case of hand, foot, and mouth. As it turns out, peeling nails, nail shedding, or nail loss, also known as Onychomadesis, is a little known complication of hand, foot, and mouth typically presenting about 3 to 4 weeks after infection, but may occur anywhere from 1 to 10 weeks after.

What is Onychomadesis, and why does it happen?

Onychomadesis is a fancy medical word for the occurrence of peeling nails which may break or fall off completely shedding at the nail bed. You may notice the nail turns white before falling off, and there may or may not be a new nail beginning to grow in below it.

It’s caused by a temporary stop or slowing in nail growth. In this case, the hand, foot, and mouth virus itself interrupts growth. So, as the nail grows up and out, there is a gap, so to speak, in the nail bed, which causes the nail above it to fall off. In minor cases, only slight indention or lines on the nails may be seen.

As hand, foot, and mouth primarily attacks the feet and hands, it makes sense that it may also affect the nail bed—this just certainly was not something I had ever heard of, and it didn’t happen the first time my kids had hand, foot, and mouth. It’s suggested that only certain strains of hand, foot, and mouth cause peeling nails, shedding, or nails falling off.

What do I do if my child’s nails are peeling or falling off?

Yeah, there’s some horror movie gross-out with this one, seriously, it is disturbing, but all my kids communicate well, and they all said that it didn’t hurt. In fact, when I removed the remainder of one peeling nail, my 2 year old didn’t even flinch. So, while it may look painful and gross, it likely isn’t hurting your child.

Your best bet is to simply keep your child’s hands clean and leave them alone. New nails will grow in and rather quickly actually. The condition is not permanent, so if it keeps happening, you should definitely speak with your pediatrician. There are other causes of nail peeling or shedding, but honestly, they are uncommon. Even fungal infections tend to only damage nails, not make them just sort of fall off.

Anyway, I will say this whole experience was rather educational. The wonderful thing about kids—and even crappy situations like lost nails in kids—is that you learn something new everyday.

This page has received so many comments, I was inspired to learn more about nails actually, specifically whether or not research supported any ways to help nails grow back faster which you can read about here.