Jump to content
This site uses cookies. Continued use is acceptance of our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. More Info... ×
  • Welcome to Celiac.com!

    You have found your celiac tribe! Join us and ask questions in our forum, share your story, and connect with others.




  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A1):



    Celiac.com Sponsor (A1-M):


  • Get Celiac.com Updates:
    Support Our Content
    eNewsletter
    Donate

Biopsy result?


Jlewisrn

Recommended Posts

Jlewisrn Contributor

I had a biopsy on Friday but he biopsied the rash not the skin next to it. I know this is wrong when testing for DH but he said that's not what it is. Can anyone tell me if they had a biopsy of the rash before they knew what it was and what the pathology report said? He just called me and said it is a drug allergy. I only take one medication and I have been on it for several years. I also stopped taking it for several months and the rash didn't go away. How do they know this? Just based on what it looks like? Because the last biopsy said "atopic dermatitis" and she said it was eczema. So 2 different diagnosis same rash. Is one right? Us either of them right? 


Celiac.com Sponsor (A8):
Celiac.com Sponsor (A8):



Celiac.com Sponsor (A8-M):



apprehensiveengineer Community Regular

I've been told a lot of things over the years... from allergic dermatitis, to "sensitive skin" to ???? to acne. I have tried to no avail to get the skin biopsy, so take my statements with a grain of salt. I am fairly confident (as was the GI I saw recently) that I have DH as my outbreaks are always directly linked to GI distress from gluten ingestion, and come in discrete "batches" as opposed to continuously, as one might expect for the other conditions I've been purported to have.

Though there is some variability in the timeline, I will get GI issues within a couple of hours of eating something bad and a couple of days later the rash breaks through the top layer of my skin. It always hits the exact same regions, and I can usually tell where it's going to show up beforehand. It will take several weeks to stop bleeding/crusting and then a purple mark will appear on the healed skin for a few months. The treatments for the various other things I've been told it is are categorically useless or irritate it further. The only thing that has helped is a very strict version of the GFD (I essentially eat no processed foods) and avoidance of super high iodine foods (seafood).

I think in my case, the thing that has stumped all the doctors when I've suggested that it might be DH is that it isn't "textbook" in the sense that it isn't restricted to my stomach and elbows. Ironically, I have read a few dermatology textbooks and they all said that DH was highly variable in appearance and could appear almost anywhere, and that it commonly appears on extensor surfaces such as the elbows because these are high friction areas - the rash appears where the skin gets microdamaged and irritated. Most of them also cited locations such as the shoulders, back, buttocks and scalp as very common locations for the rash.

I guess the silver lining is that you don't "need" dapsone to fix the problem if it actually is DH, just a super strict GFD. But... I understand the frustration. Hope this helps?

 

Jmg Mentor
On 8/8/2017 at 5:23 PM, Jlewisrn said:

So 2 different diagnosis same rash. Is one right? Us either of them right? 

I had two different diagnoses of a rash in two consecutive visits. I get the feeling its not an exact science!

 

 

Victoria1234 Experienced
On 8/8/2017 at 0:23 PM, Jlewisrn said:

I had a biopsy on Friday but he biopsied the rash not the skin next to it. I know this is wrong when testing for DH but he said that's not what it is. Can anyone tell me if they had a biopsy of the rash before they knew what it was and what the pathology report said? He just called me and said it is a drug allergy. I only take one medication and I have been on it for several years. I also stopped taking it for several months and the rash didn't go away. How do they know this? Just based on what it looks like? Because the last biopsy said "atopic dermatitis" and she said it was eczema. So 2 different diagnosis same rash. Is one right? Us either of them right? 

I was biopsied in 2006 or 2007 the correct way and they called it dh. But no one told me anything about celiac then. It wasn't until I joined this board that, I think it was jmg, told me dh meant celiac diagnosis. 

Btw the rash presented on my elbow area and a bit down from that. First year or two of going gluten-free I knew I was sensitive to something as I got the itch, not the rash.

  • 1 month later...
Tina Morris Newbie

I suffered with rashes on my elbows knees and has of spine for years. The itching was intense and made me totally miserable. Rash started as large blisters which eventually popped and scabbed over.. Doctor prescribed every cream known to man and none worked. In the end I saw a new doctor who knew immediately what it was. One visit to the hospital and biopsies on the rash area revealed DH. I am registered Coeliac and now never eat  gluten and I never have problems. 

 

Archived

This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.


  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A19):



  • Member Statistics

    • Total Members
      130,581
    • Most Online (within 30 mins)
      7,748

    Kim C.
    Newest Member
    Kim C.
    Joined

  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A20):


  • Forum Statistics

    • Total Topics
      121.3k
    • Total Posts
      1m

  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A22):





  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A21):



  • Upcoming Events

  • Posts

    • Rejoicephd
      Thank you @knitty kitty I really appreciate that suggestion as a way to reset and heal my gut - i will look into it !! 
    • Ginger38
      I also had high eosinophils which I’ve never had before either - could that be due to gluten consumption? 
    • knitty kitty
      You're welcome! Be sure the patient eats at least ten grams of gluten per day for a minimum of two weeks prior to repeating antibody testing.   Some people unconsciously reduce the amount of gluten in their diet because the feel unwell.  Three grams of gluten per day is sufficient to produce symptoms.  Only at ten grams or more is the immune system provoked to raise the antibody production high enough so that the antibodies leave the digestive tract and enter the blood stream where they can be measured.   Read the comments below the article...  
    • Wamedh Taj-Aldeen
      Thanks for your response and thoughts. Total IgA is normal. HLA DQ2/DQ8 came as heterozygous and the interpretation of the lab that the risk of coeliac disease is mild to moderate. Thyroid function test is normal. I agree that the best way is to repeat tTG antibodies in 6 months time as the result was not massively high.  
    • knitty kitty
      Welcome to the forum, @Wamedh Taj-Aldeen, How is the patient's thyroid?   You could check for thiamine deficiency which can cause the thyroid to either become hyper or hypo.  TTg IgA can be high in both hyperthyroidism and hypothyroidism.  tTg IgA can also be high if patient is taking medications to stimulate the thyroid as in hypothyroidism.   Thanks for visiting!  Keep us posted!
×
×
  • Create New...