RASH RASH RASH

[Buckeyerob75]

Ok so I've been on Atripla for 9 months now without any major issues. My counts aren't great but could be worse- CD4 is 158 and VL is UD.

Last week I had a sleep study done and right where they put one of the sticky pads to monitor my heart rate I've developed a really itchy red rash. During the check up with my ID he took one look at it and said it was ringworm.

Shortly after the first signs of the rash showed up on my side it started showing up in weird spots- my elbows, fingers, Achilles tendon, scrotum, creases of my legs/crotch, the underside of one of my toes, a few random weird spots like on my butt or the back of my legs.

These spots remind me of small pimple-like bumps but they don't have discharge of blood or pus. They're worst at night and the ones on my elbows, fingers, and Achilles get HOT and fire red.

My ID prescribed a anti-fungal cream that was a little pricey and I couldn't afford it so I've been using over the counter ringworm cream for several days. It doesn't seem to be helping any. Any ideas what the heck this might be?

[Jmarksto]

Rob; Have you ruled out scabies?

JM

[Buckeyerob75]

Hey JM- I've had scabies once before and this is very different. Those sores ooze pus and are much more widespread. The current sores are not oozing anything and are spotty.

[wolfter]

Since your professionally trained ID doctor indicates it's ringworm, I'd go with that.   Fungal infections can be tricky to treat with a low CD4 count so you might need to consider buying the expensive cream or ask if an oral treatment might be a better option. 

Wolfie

[Jmarksto]

Since your professionally trained ID doctor indicates it's ringworm, I'd go with that.   Fungal infections can be tricky to treat with a low CD4 count so you might need to consider buying the expensive cream or ask if an oral treatment might be a better option. 

Wolfie

What...??  Trust some professionally trained ID doc who sees this stuff all the time and has had a chance to see this case over some random guy with no knowledge or experience on the internet?

On a more serious note, Ann posted the following (with minor editing to include the link) in response to my ringworm issue:

Fungal infections that appear ring-like are usually caused by ringworm ( http://tinyurl.com/ringworm-link be sure to click on that link and read so you can follow any recommendations/information I may have missed).

You'd probably have better results if you used an OTC cream containing miconazole or clotrimazole, rather than a powder. I've always found antifungal powders to be better at prevention than cure. Creams are better absorbed into the skin and make it easier for the drugs to combat an established infection. You may want to top up with the powder as well to help keep the area dry, but use a cream first.

Write the two drug names down and go to a drug store - if you can't find what you need on the shelves, hand the paper to the pharmacist and he or she will be happy to help.

It can take up to four weeks to get rid of it, and you'll need to be washing the area a couple times a day and applying the cream after thoroughly drying the area. Do this before bed, when you get up in the morning, and at least once during the day - or more, depending on how bad the infection is and how much you're sweating during the day.

Always wash your hands after touching the affected areas or applying cream - you can spread ringworm around your body if you're not careful. Do not re-use towels (use small hand-towels or even wash cloths to dry yourself to save on laundry) and change your shirt every time you wash and apply the cream. Same goes for nightwear or bedding if you sleep nekkid. It might be easier on your laundry if you wear a tee-shirt to bed while you're dealing with this.

If it doesn't start to improve after a week or so, see your doctor. You may need a systemic med (usually ketoconazole in pill form) to get rid of it, because don't forget, your body is also constantly fighting hiv and so it might not bother dealing with the fungus. Your body will consider the fungus to be small beans compared to your newly acquired virus.

Good luck. Nothing worse than the fungus among us!

The link to the full thread including Ann's post is here:

http://forums.poz.com/index.php?topic=44778.msg551563#msg551563

Best, JM

[Ann]

On a more serious note, Ann posted the following (with minor editing to include the link) in response to my ringworm issue:

Thanks for that, JM. I had a look for that thread earlier but couldn't find it - and I needed to get off the internet for a while to take care of a couple pressing issues. So thanks, you saved me some time!

[Buckeyerob75]

Thanks for the advice! I went to the pharmacist and he assisted me is getting both a cream and powder (inexpensively).

I'm using them both religiously and it does seem to be getting better a little bit. One major concern was if it's on my hands how the heck can it NOT be spread? I wash my hands frequently and have also been applying the cream there in the morning and nights but figured it was just getting washed off anyway.

I'll keep it up like I have been and hopefully it'll continue to fade away! Unfortunately I am bald and have no hair dryer to 'dry' the areas in question lol

[Ann]

Rob, you might want to try applying the cream to your hands, letting it absorb, then putting the powder on them before slipping on a pair of gloves before you go to bed, keeping the gloves on overnight.