Stinging Painful Itching on Legs and Arms

[hugs2day]

My ds6 is having PANDAS symptoms since school started. One of the many physical symptoms is he complains of chronic itching that aggitates him and wakes him up from sleep as well. He describes it as shooting pain and then itching like bugs crawling on skin. Anybody elses children experience this symptom?

 

He is on HD Azithro and rotating strong probiotics. I first I thought yeast but it is worse when in PANDAS flare up. Thanks

[3xmommo]

Scroll down and check out the video of Margaret, who suffered from itching and fatique. It might be helpful for you to see her story!

 

http://www.stankurtz.com/biomedical/comprehensive-antiviral-approach.html

[LNN]

Does this describe the pain? (from Wiki - take it with a grain of salt, but if the word itself is an accurate description, it mught give you something to research...

 

Dysesthesia (dysaesthesia) comes from the Greek word "dys", meaning "not-normal" and "aesthesis", which means "sensation" (abnormal sensation).[1] It is defined as an unpleasant, abnormal sense of touch, and it may be, or not be, considered as a kind of pain.[2] It is caused by lesions of the nervous system, peripheral or central, and it involves sensations, whether spontaneous or evoked, such as burning, wetness, itching, electric shock, and pins and needles.

 

It is sometimes described as feeling like acid under the skin. Burning dysesthesia might accurately reflect an acidotic state in the synapses and perineural space. Some ion channels will open to a low pH, the acid sensing ion channel has been shown to open at body temperature, in a model of nerve injury pain. Dysesthetic burning may be hallucinatory as to the cutaneous surface, but accurate as to what is occurring in the synapses.[citation needed]

 

Causes

 

Dysesthesia is commonly seen in diabetic patients, and can be relieved by using creams containing capsaicin.

Dysesthesia is among symptoms of neuropathy (along with paresthesias, gait disturbance, weakness, and absent DTRS).

Dysesthesia, along with polyneuropathy can be a symptom of nerve damage caused by Lyme Disease

Dysesthesia is a common symptom of a withdrawal from alcohol or other drugs.

Dysesthesia is also a common symptom of Multiple Sclerosis, or MS. It is an effect of spinal cord injury.[3]

[Familyof5]

I have had that symptom as an adult. My children's skin also gets itchy, but the pains they experience don't sound as severe. Although, my son used to wake up frequently with "growing pains" in his shins. I would have to massage his shins till he fell back to sleep. I am extremely sensitive to biotoxins (in particular mold toxins) and believe I now also suffer from multiple chemical sensitivity. I will itch severely and experience creepy crawlies in many instances. For example, if I put on some clothes that haven't been freshly washed, if I lie in a bed with linens that have "dust" on them, when I first sit on a couch and disrupt the dust on it, if I just vacuumed the house and stirred up the dust in the house, there are everyday occasions where I experience these creepy crawlies.

[Familyof5]

I have had that symptom as an adult. My children's skin also gets itchy, but the pains they experience don't sound as severe. Although, my son used to wake up frequently with "growing pains" in his shins. I would have to massage his shins till he fell back to sleep. I am extremely sensitive to biotoxins (in particular mold toxins) and believe I now also suffer from multiple chemical sensitivity. I will itch severely and experience creepy crawlies in many instances. For example, if I put on some clothes that haven't been freshly washed, if I lie in a bed with linens that have "dust" on them, when I first sit on a couch and disrupt the dust on it, if I just vacuumed the house and stirred up the dust in the house, there are everyday occasions where I experience these creepy crawlies.

Thought I'd add that maybe you could put fresh linens on his bed just before he goes to sleep (not in the AM) and see if he experiences less symptoms (at least less creepy crawlies). The shooting pain sensation is a typrical mold illness symptom (maybe also a PANDAS) caused from low Melonocyte Stimulating Hormone which is a regulating hormone which controls many things including sleep and your body's ability to withstand pain.

[tpotter]

Does this describe the pain? (from Wiki - take it with a grain of salt, but if the word itself is an accurate description, it mught give you something to research...

 

Dysesthesia (dysaesthesia) comes from the Greek word "dys", meaning "not-normal" and "aesthesis", which means "sensation" (abnormal sensation).[1] It is defined as an unpleasant, abnormal sense of touch, and it may be, or not be, considered as a kind of pain.[2] It is caused by lesions of the nervous system, peripheral or central, and it involves sensations, whether spontaneous or evoked, such as burning, wetness, itching, electric shock, and pins and needles.

 

It is sometimes described as feeling like acid under the skin. Burning dysesthesia might accurately reflect an acidotic state in the synapses and perineural space. Some ion channels will open to a low pH, the acid sensing ion channel has been shown to open at body temperature, in a model of nerve injury pain. Dysesthetic burning may be hallucinatory as to the cutaneous surface, but accurate as to what is occurring in the synapses.[citation needed]

 

Causes

 

Dysesthesia is commonly seen in diabetic patients, and can be relieved by using creams containing capsaicin.

Dysesthesia is among symptoms of neuropathy (along with paresthesias, gait disturbance, weakness, and absent DTRS).

Dysesthesia, along with polyneuropathy can be a symptom of nerve damage caused by Lyme Disease

Dysesthesia is a common symptom of a withdrawal from alcohol or other drugs.

Dysesthesia is also a common symptom of Multiple Sclerosis, or MS. It is an effect of spinal cord injury.[3]

 

That would explain DS's "electric shocks" (i had found the correlation with Lyme, and it has greatly decreased since starting treatment.)

[hugs2day]

That is interesting the itching is at its worst after bathtime at night before bed and he definitely has trouble sleeping. I will be researching this hormonal imbalance. I know kids with autism often have hormonal imbalances. Thank you for the insight. Lyme crosses my mind too but not ready to go there yet because his symptoms seem textbook PANDAS to me because of his long history with strep, staph and impetigo.

[thenmama]

xx

Edited March 27, 2013 by thenmama

[thenmama]

xx

Edited March 27, 2013 by thenmama

[hugs2day]

THANK YOU. I did just that I gave him a night off of no bath and the itching wasn't quite as bad. He has sensory issues since very young and I remember the itching starting at age 3 but managable with a few scratches and lotion. NOt like now during PANDAS symptoms where he gets agitated over it we actually think of it as a PANDAS symptom now but it is so bad it accompanies the other Neuorpsych symptoms. It could be a sensory problem I gave him body brushes one with hard bristles and one with soft bristles and he has found a little bit of relief using those.

 

I don't think it is the Azithro, gosh I hope not I consider that his paxil right now. Augmentin hurt his stomach and it didn't remit his symptoms as well as Azithro.

[beeskneesmommy]

Over the past several months I have been experiencing prickly pain and wild, severe itching on the inside of my elbows, shoulder and for a short time, an area of my scalp. It would wake me up at night and I had never experienced anything like it! Cool water followed by very hypoallergenic lotion (dermatalogic, like Cetaphil) helped, but did not eradicate the symptoms. I have discovered since (we think) that it is a form of Excema brought on by stress! Not only are we under great stress as parents, but I am sure our kids feel it pretty strongly as well. This is just a thought - I may be completely off base but I thought it was worth sharing...

[philamom]

My daughter is a night time scratcher. When ever I check on her while she's sleeping, she's scratching. She's been on different antibiotics, including zith, and haven't seen a correlation. It used to be much worse and she would scratch during the day as well, now I just notice it during the night. No scented laundry or bath products here. Maybe it has something to do with histamine, like Dr. T mentions. But, it is much better since PANDAS/Lyme treatment.

 

BeesKnees- I hear you about the stress! Right after learning of my daughter's lyme diagnosis, about a year ago, my face started breaking out. A few months later I finally went to the doctor (yes, us moms always put ourselves last) and was told I had rosacea. I'm sure it was triggered by stress.

[hugs2day]

Your probably right, because last night the attack was on his arms. It was in bed and he was having trouble falling asleep even with melatonin, kept telling me my arms hurt help me. He wanted them scratched not rubbed or massaged and he was anxious and in a hurry like they were on fire. So I no longer have restless leg syndrome theory I wonder about stress, histamine, toxins, neuropathy, thyroid ... the list goes on. Probably it is neurological because PANDAS always effects his vestibular system.

 

Although, Benadryl did help so maybe histamine. My son is 6 and has organic cotton sheets and comforter, very little furniture in his room to avoid allergens and an hepa air purifier. I'm pretty sure the itching is not on the skin it is nerves underneath. He was diagnosed at 3 with autism which I know recognize as PANDAS and he has been organic and detoxing for nearly 3 years it is not enough to counteract this bacterial problem. Doctor added Flagyl a couple of days ago hopefully that will bring some relief to the discomfort and agitation.