You all are so helpful, wise and understanding, I thought you might be able to help. FTD husband in psych hospital for med ajustment for aggression/anger. Dr. put him on Depakote (125 mg 1x/day, 250 2x/day) to deal with aggression and "motorization" in addition to Lexapro 5 mg 1x/day, Aricept 10 mg 1x/day, Namenda 5 mg 2x/day, Seroquel 100 mg 1x/day and Lunestra 3 mg 1x/day. I am verwhelmed by the number of strong medications thay have put him on. Most of the aggression is environmental because he's very unhappy about being in a dementia ward with older, less functional people. Anyway, I visited today and he has a severe, welting rash all over his torso (and the nursing staff didn't notice!). Has anyone had a LO who had this reaction from any of the above mentioned meds? I think it's either the Depakote or the Seroquel because those were recently increased.
LFL: Side effects of both Aricept and Namenda include rash and itching. I'm not familiar with the other meds you mentioned, but I'm sure someone here will be. Good luck.
I have just discovered a really great new way to go on a diet ... look up possible causes of a skin rash. Blurgh.
The short answer is ... any of the above. Lunesta and seroquel only cause various sorts of skin problems "infrequently" or "rarely", while the others ... wow. So my money would be on the Depakote. But you're going to have to discuss this with the doctor.
The looooooooooong answer is:
Depakote frequently causes various types of skin problems. These include:
- Maculopapular rash: a flat, red area on the skin (macule) that is covered with small confluent bumps (papules). This type of rash is common in several diseases and medical conditions, including scarlet fever, measles, Fifth disease, and heat rash.
- Discoid lupus erythematosis -- a red, raised rash, usually on the face and scalp, although sometimes elsewhere For pictures, see http://www.aocd.org/skin/dermatologic_diseases/discoid_lupus_eryt.html http://www.visualdxhealth.com/adult/discoidLupusErythematosus.htm
- Furunculosis: Painful pus-filled bumps on the skin resulting from the deep infection of a hair follicle. The infection is usually caused by a type of bacteria called Staphylococcus aureus (staph). Many people are "carriers" of the staph germ, meaning that it normally lives on their skin or in their nose without doing them any harm. Tiny breaks in the surface of the skin (such as those caused by friction or scratching), however, can help the germ gain entry into and infect the hair follicle, resulting in a boil. Untreated boils can enlarge or grow together to form a giant multi-headed boil (carbuncle).
- Seborrhea: a skin disorder affecting the scalp, face, and trunk causing scaly, flaky, itchy, red skin. It particularly affects the sebum-gland rich areas of skin.
If you can tell the differences among these rashes, you're a better man than I am, Charlie Brown. But I think the bottom line is that Depakote can cause a lot of nasty rashes.
Lexapro: frequently causes a rash. It can infrequently cause furunculosis (see above), eczema (see below), and pruritus (an itch or a sensation that makes a person want to scratch.)
- Eczema is broadly applied to a number of persistent skin conditions characterized by one or more of these symptoms: redness, skin swelling, itching and dryness, crusting, flaking, blistering, cracking, oozing, or bleeding. For a picture see:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eczema
Aricept: frequently causes a rash, or pruritus (see above). It can also cause, although infrequently:
- Psoriasis, which causes red scaly patches to appear on the skin. For a picture, see: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Psoriasis
- Urticaria (hives), an allergic reactio that results in raised red skin wheals or welts. For pictures, see: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Urticaria
- Vesiculobullous rash: a blistering rash characterized by serous-fluid-filled vesicles (blisters).
Namenda: frequent side effects include ... guess what ... a rash. It can also cause, although infrequently, skin ulceration, pruritus, cellulitis, eczema, dermatitis, erythematous rash, and urticaria. (Sorry, I'm not looking up pictures for the new types of skin problems. I'm beginning to itch all over.)
Seroquel: Well, hey. This one only lists skin problems as occurring infrequently. These include pruritus, acne, eczema, contact dermatitis, maculopapular rash, seborrhea, and skin ulcers; while psoriasis is rare.
Lunesta: Another one that only causes skin problems infrequently (acne, contact dermatitis, eczema, and urticaria) or rarely (erythema, multiforme, furunculosis, maculopapular rash, or vesiculobullous rash.)
If severe itching scabies can also be the problem. My Mother developed a rash and severe itching about a week after being in a rehab hospital. I had never had any experience with this before and it took 2 Doctors to find the culprit. I understand they spread in that kind of enviroment. I don't think they would cause welts unless scratching was involved. My Mother said it was the worse itching she had ever had and she could not keep from scratching.
I have rosacea - the red facial flush. Harmless but having a red nose all the time is a real pain, or rather was, when I was out around people a lot. THe doctor gave me tetracycline a couple of times when it went from red to pimples, but the things I were to avoid were: Heat. Cold. Chocolate. Garlic. Spicy food. Alcohol. Caffiene. He didn't say sex but I wouldn't have been surprised. I decided to just get concealer and eat what I wanted and go where I wanted.