Erythema Multiforme Say What?!

Erythema multiforme is a skin condition of unknown cause, possibly mediated by deposition of immune complex (mostly IgM) in the superficial microvasculature of the skin and oral mucous membrane that usually follows an infection or drug exposure. It is a common disorder, with peak incidence in the second and third decades of life.

Yep, that is what came to visit us last week and just won't leave!  Last week Monday as we were getting Evan ready for bed we noticed some spots on his thigh and arm, I blew it off thinking it must be insect bites or something like that.  On Tuesday morning, which was supposed to be Evan's first day of school, I hear T calling me from the other side of the house saying "There is something wrong with Evan!", panic stricken, I dash accross the house to find what looked like hives all over my sweet childs legs, arms, back and torso, tops of his hands and feet.  I was racking my brain trying to figure out what he could possibly be allergic to.  The only thing that we did different that day was play at the playground at our church, maybe there was mold or fungus in the mulch that he had a reaction to.  It was 7:00am and I wanted Evan to go to his first day of school so I sent T off to Mercy Urgent Care with Evan.

Evan was diagnosed with an allergic reaction and given a steroid and benadryl and we were to follow a regimen of steroid and benadryl at home.  He missed his first day of school but at least I know what is going on, but still confused by what is causing the allergic reaction.  As the day was going on, the rash was going away and I was feeling relieved until Evan came in from playing outside with newly formed spots on his face and arms and I was seeing it spread right before my very eyes.  Worry is taking over and morning can't come soon enough so I can call his doctor.  I just didn't think it was allergies at this point.

Wednesday morning, 8:30am finally came and I called the pediatrician's nurse right as that clock changed from 8:32 to 8:33 (I had to give them a couple minutes to settle in for the day!).  I was able to get in at 10:30am, not quite soon enough but it will do.  At this point I was feeling very anxious, my mind was consumed by Evan's rash.  Thankfully I have my mother-in-law close by and my Mom for moral support.  I called in the troops.  I can't even tolerate Ethan's antics, I felt like I was going to spontaneous combust from internalizing my anxiety and anger towards my 2 year olds behavior...doesn't he know that I am stressed out, HELLOOOO!!!

Fast forward to the doctor's office.  I have the most friendly and knowledgable pediatrican on the planet and her staff of nurses are just as amazing.  Dr. Hahn took one look at Evan and said, "this is not hives, it is Erythema Multiforme".   I was like "arysuminawhaaaaa?!".  Apparantly it is a rash that takes on many forms (hence "multiforme"), it is caused by a virus and is NOT contagious.  Praise God!  the downside is that it can last anywhere from 1 to 4 weeks..sigh..

Because I have to know everything about what is going on with my dear children I got on the internet immediatley and starting typing in "Erythema Multiforme" in my google search engine but instead of clicking on search, I clicked on "Images", then "Search"....please don't do this unless you want to have a heart attack and be grossed out!  I just wanted to see if the images that came up looked like what Evan had....and yes it does but there is Erythema Multiforme MINOR and MAJOR.....Minor is what Evan has....Major is something you don't want to have.  By the way, the doctor did warn me about doing a search on the internet because I might get worried!  I bet doctors really love it when their patients do this, don't you think?!  So the condition Evan is dealing with at the moment will go away but we are not sure when and from my online research it appears as though it is something that may re-occur an unknown number of times, but it also might not.  It is also unknown as to what really causes this.

It is now 6 days later and he mostly does not have the rash but if he goes outside and runs around, he comes in with spots all over his face and arms and hands.  It is the strangest thing.  He just came in from being outside an hour ago and his face was covered in red spots (looks like really bad acne) and I just went to check on him and they are all gone now.

I wanted to write about this strange skin disorder because I only found one blog out there about this and while medical sites are very helpful, I found it comforting to read about a real person's first hand experience with Erythema Multiforme in their toddler.  I hope it will help another Mom dealing with this very minor but not so minor thing.

I will update more about the progression also pictures which I think will be helpful for anyone who comes accross this blog.

Love,

Me and the 3 E's!