I'd been thinking the itchy, blistery spots on my hands might be a mild version of DH - mild in that they're just on my hands and not like the awful pictures you see if you google DH pics.
Well, I read all through the DH section here Blimey, loads of people have spots on their hands! The linked pictures of spots on the palm looked just like mine. Also I have exposure to iodine skin wash at work so thought maybe that would make it come out on my hands only. Also I thought it got worse when I took non-steroidals.
I'd seen dermatologists before, so went back to my current one to ask for a biopsy. I thought that might be a good way to bypass the gluten-free/duodenal biopsy problem. I'd had a bad outbreak recently and had a few recent spots for her to look at. She said, " That would be ridiculous. That's not DH. That's pompholyx!"
So I looked that up and it does sound and look very much like my spots.
http://dermnetnz.org/dermatitis/pompholyx.htmlIt's also common. It's a type of eczema, affecting hands and feet, also known as dyshyditic (sp?) eczema. I thinks it was Stephanie who wrote about "tapioca pearls" and that's exactly how it was described in one of the google sites I read, but basically clusters of blisters and spots, very common in people with nickel allergy.
Anyway, I told the dermatologist that the strong steroid cream didn't work so she gave me samples of some new stuff called Protopic ( generic tacrolimus). I think dermatologists get quite excited at having a drug other than steroids to use. I used it 3 or 4 times before I looked up the data sheet and decided I didn't want it - warnings about immunosupprssion, lymphoma etc. I decided I'd rather carry on tackling things with diet change rather than add in a new complication.
This week I've lapsed though. I'm waiting for Enterolab results and I think that's made me feel a bit unsure about what I'm doing. Maybe I'm about to find out there's no problem with gluten and I've imagined the whole thing, so twice this week I've eaten food I hven't been sure of because I wasn't confident enough to refuse! And I'm feeling relly crappy.
I'm feeling so run-down, I don't know if this is what's causing the problem, or whether it's the new ointment. Now I've got a nail-bed infection, 2 tiny cooking-cuts have turned into big pussy things, and I've got a horrible boil-type thing on my fingetr, that's swelled up like a banana, and now it's spreading onto my palm. Honestly, if it's any worse tomorrow I think I'm going to have to go to the ER.
I'm sorry, I don't know if this is celiac related. Thanks for reading anyway.
Matilda