About 4 months ago I had a nodule come up on the back of my lower leg and I was told by my family doctor that it was related to my Lupus. I showed my Rheumy and he increased my prednisone to 20 mg. a day along with Arava, Plaquinl, and Lyrica for nerve damage in my legs. When I went back in a mo. My leg & Ankle were swollen so bad that I couldn't wear shoes. My ankle and foot feels so weak that I'm afraid I am going to twist my ankle and fall, and the pain in that hip and leg and foot is a pain deep to the bone and is almost unbearable. Also the red itchy rash had spread all around my leg with ugly bloody scabs. He perscribed Dapsone to go with the prednisone, plavquenil, and arava that I have taken since I was diagnoised with Lupus 2 years ago. Now another month has passed and the rash is everywhere. Started on my leg, and now is on legs, arms, back and stomach, breasts and neck. The itch is terrible and leaving scabs when I scratch. I have found that whenever I brush against a body part with the rash, my skin is tender to the touch and the itch makes me want to scrape my skin off.. Also, if I barely touch the rash ,it begins to bleed. The bumps are busting open and bleeding a lot. The blood spots are ruining my clothes for I am constantly wiping the blood away in some area of my body. I have so many, I'm bleeding somewhere all the time. Is this Lupus or something else? I go to the Rheumy Wednesday. If anyone has ever experienced these symptoms, please let me know. This is the first rash I've had except for the butterfly rash on my nose and face. Its been 4 months of doctor visits and medicine and am getting worse every day. Thanks for taking my question!

I read the problems for you and also others who have written similar experiences above. These are all manifestations of different grades and varieties of lupus.
Such skin lesions can be called discoid lesions. they appear in about 5 to20 % of lupus patients.
they can appear as red scaly patches, severe itching, bullae.
treatment with topical application of glucocorticoics can help a lot.
in patiets with severe bl;eeding lesions i would suggest a blood platelet count. reduction in count is associated with manifestaions in some and requires high dose prednisolone therapy.A peripheral smear should also be done to rule out any haemolysis.
thank you.

I have experienced skin lesions around my feet and ankle which is caused by my inflammatory response on the skin. I have not experienced it to the degree that you mention, but know it is possible for these to be present. I have also been on steroids, anti-malarials, chemo etc... and it comes and goes. I find when my flare is worse so are the lesions. It may benefit you to use aveeno products, as they have helped me.

I have a similar rash and my leg, foot and ankle are swollen to the point that I cannot wear shoes. I also itch, very much. It started in the back of my leg, I thought it was a flea bite and then it continued to spread up my leg and now on the other leg and I have noticed a couple of itchy patches on my arm. They are telling me that it is an inflamation of the blood vessels. I am taking ibuprophen but it does not seem to help. Now not only does it itch, it hurts also. Hope we can find out what is causing this because it is playing havic on my daily life.

My child has had all this but it is not "all over " her body. The dr's say it is all part of the Lupus issue and the thing that makes us look ahead and stay positive although it is a big pain and hurtful. Is the fact that they claim it will get better in time and ""may NOT happen again.

I hope this helps you some. But I am a health care worker as well and I want you to know if you don't always know you can speak up and ask anything you want and if you feel yor getting the brush off then you can get another opinion w/o recourse fromy our Dr's.

Arava can cause Stevens Johnson syndrome. You need to see another doctor for a second opinion and quick!!

Oh, and I forgot to mention, I am not a doctor. Always ask a doctor before trying any meds or remedys...

Yes, the lupus rash can cover your entire body. Right now I have it on my face, arms, back and legs. I have had (SLE) Lupus since 1979 and I have had it just about everywhere. I only take Plaquinel right now because I have ovarian cancer and undergoing chemo and the onocologist will only allow me to take that for lupus. My Rheumy gave me a script for Fluocinonide 0.05 cream for my body and he gave me Mometasone Furoate Cream 0.1 for my face. Ask your doctor about those, they help me alot. If you can't get that, then Aveeno anti-itch cream that you can get over the counter works good also.

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