Tiny Red Bumps

[Mother of Jibril]

I tried looking through old posts for something like this... but I can't seem to find anything that matches just right.

I have some tiny, red, itchy bumps on my hands that showed up in the last few days. They're about 1mm in diameter... not on my palms, and I only have about half a dozen. No bumps on the rest of my body. It's too cold for most bug bites (we just had our first snowfall yesterday). Plus, if were something like scabies, wouldn't they have chosen a warmer part of my body?

I called to make sure our turkey was gluten and corn free... a "halal" brand (the Muslim version of Kosher)... and the guy said it was fine. Now I wonder. I've also been constipated and having some mild abdominal pain the last couple of days. Can you get DH on your hands?

I already had a dermatologist appointment scheduled for Friday... I'm just curious to hear any ideas on what this might be.

[mushroom]

I usually have at least one of these intensely itchy little bumps on the backs of my hands and fingers, often several, although none right now. I have no idea what causes them. But then again I am vey much a skin problem kind of person!!

[Mother of Jibril]

  mushroom said:

I am vey much a skin problem kind of person!!

Me too! I went straight from teenage acne to adult acne I also have halo nevi (places where my skin is reabsorbing a mole) and rosacea. Thankfully, on the gluten-free diet the long-time rash on my buttocks has gone away! My rosacea is looking better too.

[mushroom]

I finally no longer have the rash on my upper arms that my mother used to tell me was caused by not eating my vegetables

[luciddream928]

I get those tiny red bumps too. Exactly how you described. I am convinced they have to do with gluten intolerance because when I am accidentally glutened and all my typical symptoms reappear, the rash is soon to follow. I can't even really call it a rash, the bumps cluster together but not all over my hands, just the joints of my fingers and the top of my right foot.

Incidentally, my mother gets these bumps in the exact same places as me, and we have similar digestive problems. Mine are more severe though. Not sure if it's DH per se, but related to gluten, IMHO.

[Mother of Jibril]

  mushroom said:

I finally no longer have the rash on my upper arms that my mother used to tell me was caused by not eating my vegetables

My parents told me the rash on my buttocks was "sweat pimples."

  luciddream928 said:

I get those tiny red bumps too. Exactly how you described. I am convinced they have to do with gluten intolerance because when I am accidentally glutened and all my typical symptoms reappear, the rash is soon to follow. I can't even really call it a rash, the bumps cluster together but not all over my hands, just the joints of my fingers and the top of my right foot.

Incidentally, my mother gets these bumps in the exact same places as me, and we have similar digestive problems. Mine are more severe though. Not sure if it's DH per se, but related to gluten, IMHO.

Right! The bumps are around the joints on my hands... not really enough to call it a "rash." When I see my parents next month I'll have to check their hands

Incidentally, I see we share the DQ7 gene. I'm pretty sure I got that one from my dad.

[ksymonds84]

I get those too. The last time was an hour after having Mcdonald's frenchfries (went through drive up and didn't pay attention if they were using a dedicated fryer...my bad). They are usually up and down my fingers with a few on the front of my hands. Mine go away pretty quickly though which is why I think its glutened related but not DH. I also have rosacea, keep waiting for it to go away, glad yours is getting better, it gives me hope!

[Mother of Jibril]

  ksymonds84 said:

I also have rosacea, keep waiting for it to go away, glad yours is getting better, it gives me hope!

What really helped with that was taking Betaine HCl with protein meals. I don't know exactly how it reduces inflammation, all I know is that it improves my digestion. Hypochlorhydria (low stomach acid) is one cause of rosacea. For the first time in years I don't look like I have a sunburn on my face! I still flush very easily, but it goes away in a few hours.

[mushroom]

  ksymonds84 said:

I also have rosacea, keep waiting for it to go away, glad yours is getting better, it gives me hope!

My rosacea has gone away too. Now it only comes back with a glass of wine.

[ksymonds84]

  Mother of Jibril said:

What really helped with that was taking Betaine HCl with protein meals. I don't know exactly how it reduces inflammation, all I know is that it improves my digestion. Hypochlorhydria (low stomach acid) is one cause of rosacea. For the first time in years I don't look like I have a sunburn on my face! I still flush very easily, but it goes away in a few hours.

Good info, I will check into it!

[ksymonds84]

  mushroom said:

My rosacea has gone away too. Now it only comes back with a glass of wine.

I'm fine with a little white wine but if I drink red, I look like rudolph!

[zeta-lilly]

  mushroom said:

I finally no longer have the rash on my upper arms that my mother used to tell me was caused by not eating my vegetables

I've always had little red bumps on my upper arms. So does my dad and a friend of mine (who has pretty severe colitis). They're not itchy or anything. Is that what you're talking about or it is that Dermatitis herpetiformis? I never thought about it being related, but I haven't been gluten free long.

[mushroom]

  zeta_lilly said:

I've always had little red bumps on my upper arms. So does my dad and a friend of mine (who has pretty severe colitis). They're not itchy or anything. Is that what you're talking about or it is that Dermatitis herpetiformis? I never thought about it being related, but I haven't been gluten free long.

Yeah, those were what I had on my upper arms. Different from the itchy ones on my hands, and definitely not DH.

[julirama723]

Aren't those little red bumps (on the arms) Keratosis Pilaris? I have those. They went away for a while (when I was grain-free) but now they're back.

Ugh, also had the butt bumps. Those are THE WORST!

Mother of Jibril--I think you'd posted in a different topic that there might be a relation between KP and celiac? I've read quite a few Celiac/Gluten-Intolerant people also have KP! Do you think the bumps on your hands are KP?

[julirama723]

Oh, threadjack--question about the rosacea--how do you know if it's rosacea and not just rosy cheeks?

My doctor tested me for lupus because my face was so red. I have one sip of wine and I look like Rudolph, too.

[Mother of Jibril]

  julirama723 said:

Ugh, also had the butt bumps. Those are THE WORST!

Mother of Jibril--I think you'd posted in a different topic that there might be a relation between KP and celiac? I've read quite a few Celiac/Gluten-Intolerant people also have KP! Do you think the bumps on your hands are KP?

I did see that post about keratosis pilaris... very interesting! It sounds exactly like the "arm rash" that other people on this thread have described. I don't think that's what my bumps are though, since I don't have hair follicules around the joints on my hands.

The "butt bumps" ARE annoying! The worst for me was taking a bath... it hurt to sit on the hard surface, and then the bumps would get inflamed from the heat and stick to the tub. I'm planning to ask the dermatologist about those too.

  julirama723 said:

Oh, threadjack--question about the rosacea--how do you know if it's rosacea and not just rosy cheeks? My doctor tested me for lupus because my face was so red.

Good question! This diagnosis came from my dermatologist. I went to her because I thought I might have vitiligo. In addition to the white spots on my hands (halo nevi), I also pointed out that the skin around my eyes was really pale compared to the rest of my face (Not just rosy cheeks from sunburn or being outside... I looked like that all the time). She checked me with a Wood's lamp and said it's not vitiligo... she suggested rosacea and gave me a Rx for Finacea. I really hate trying new products on my face because my skin is SO sensitive, but it actually helped. Now that I'm corn and gluten-free and taking Betaine HCl with protein meals, I don't even need to use the Finacea!

You're absolutely right that the redness of lupus and rosacea can look similar. I wonder if there's any connection. My ANA was 33, not high enough to be positive for lupus, but definitely showing some autoimmune activity. One of my aunts has lupus... it's associated with the DQ7 gene.

[Mother of Jibril]

OK... so the tiny red bumps on my hands started drying up about a week after I got glutened (on Thanksgiving ).

I got glutened again on Monday (darn holidays!!) and the bumps are back... only this time, I'm also using some new shampoos that my dermatologist prescribed for yeast overgrowth on my scalp. My scalp is fine (I don't think the shampoos have gluten), but the daily showers are killing my skin! The bumps have spread up my arms and are SO itchy. Grrrr.

I'm going to call the dermatologist's office tomorrow and ask what they recommend. There's no way I'm going to last for the next six weeks on this regimen.

I can hardly wait until the holidays are over so I can go on the SCD. For now I'm just eating as little processed food as possible.

[fedora]

this was one of my worst symptoms. My little fluid filled blisters were on my palms and fingers. they got so bad that they ate my hand. It was terrible. I got staph and strep in them and could only use my thumb and forefinger. talk about scary. I took antibiotics and used steriods. The rash got better. But when I went off wheat it completely went away. when I would eat wheat, it would come back.

Now I only get them when my digestion gets messed up, but only a few at a time. I don't think it is always gluten related. I know people who get them from corn and I think it could be leaky gut related.

My grandmother(dad's mom) also got them and my mother, but my mom's were from soap.

I also would get itchy buttocks that would get bumpy. In fact, I itched everywhere.

my rash was called Dyshidrotic Eczema. there are photos and info on several websites. my dr says it is allergy related. It is connected to nickel allergy too.

I washed my hands as little as possible, showered with gloves and used gloves to wash dishes. fun days those were.

[Mother of Jibril]

Ahhhh.... yes. I looked at some websites and DE fits my symptoms better than anything I've seen before. Thank you for that suggestion!!

My first outbreak was not too bad. Just a few blisters on my hands. This time it's also on my palms and my feet I took a couple of CC risks and now it looks like I'm paying the price. I'm trying not to scratch... how scary to get a staph infection!

I'm still going to call the dermatologist tomorrow. There's no way I can keep taking showers every day when it's making the itching worse. Maybe she'll have some other suggestion.