Bottom of foot red and scaly?

[jlacey]

Hi
I am sure I read something on one of these forums about this being symptomatic of Crohn's or side effect of medicine?

Last 2 nights I notice Sydney...my 6 yr old daughter doing something with the bottom of her foot...when I looked...one was ok...the other was somewhat red up on the ball of her foot...and looked scaly...like it was peeling?

Any ideas?

 

[Crohn's Mom]

Hi

Has she had any recent infections, such as strep throat, or viral infections?
Sometimes, well at least in my daughters case, it can be an "after symptom" of an infection.
I'm not sure if it can be Crohn's related or not...sorry if I am no help

 

[jlacey]

Thanks for responding...and No...she hasn't been sick at all...her January bloodwork all came back good so I have no clue what is the cause...unless a type of dermatitis as a result of the disease....

 

[Devynnsmom]

My 10 year old daughter lost all the skin on the bottoms of both feet at the beginning of January. I was told it is def crohn's related. I can post a pic of her feet if you would like to see what they looked like.

 

[jlacey]

Oh my....is she ok?
Is there anything I can do now to prevent them from getting worse?? :s

 

[Crohn's Mom]

Your welcome, sorry I'm no help. I hope you get it sorted soon.

What meds is she on btw ? I think I read somewhere that peeling skin can be a side affect of Sulfasalazine?

 

[jlacey]

Ahhh there ya go....that is exactly what medicine she is taking...perhaps I read it on the Medicine forum...must go check...thanks!

 

[Crohn's Mom]

You're welcome !

 

[Devynnsmom]

Her feet are pretty raw still, but not sore anymore. The skin is slowly growing back. We used a hydrocortisone cream (dr prescribed it thinking it was a contact allergy). Im not sure if it helped or not. Her GI said it was fine to use. She is going in for an upper and lower scope Feb 23 unless something opens up before that. Here are a few pics of her feet...

 

[jlacey]

Oh sin....poor girlie....Sydney's do not hurt or anything...and I hope do not as she just joined basketball and is enjoying it

 

[Crohn's Mom]

Here's a list of side effects I found

Sulfasalazine [Azulfadine]
Common Side Effects

abdominal or stomach pain or upset
diarrhea
loss of appetite
nausea or vomiting
aching of joints
headache (continuing)
itching
increased sensitivity of skin to sunlight
skin rash

Less Common or Rare

aching of joints and muscles
back, leg, or stomach pains
bloody diarrhea
bluish fingernails, lips, or skin; chest pain
cough
difficult breathing
difficulty in swallowing
fever, chills, or sore throat
general feeling of discomfort or illness
loss of appetite
pale skin
redness, blistering, peeling, or loosening of skin
unusual bleeding or bruising
unusual tiredness or weakness
yellow eyes or skin

 

[Lisa]

oh my!...those pics look like a burn healing! Having had burns myself, I can relate!.....

Probably one of the biggest things to do is find a moisturizer that doesn't irritate the new skin and use that - catching those edges of dried skin and pulling can HURT and also cause tears/bleeding.....

jlacey - hope your little one doesn't get any worse!

 

[jlacey]

Oh I am sooo glad that she is feeling better and the cream helped....HUGS to her!

 

[Devynnsmom]

Thank you

 

[Silvermoon]

Just to add my two cents.... :redface:

Yes, one of the side-effects of Sulfasalazine (and apparently most of the other 5-ASA medications that are used for IBD) is peeling of the skin/rashes/etc.

One side effect (that is 'kind of' listed by Crohn's Mom ) of these medications is called peripheral neuropothy - which basically means that there is decreased blood fow/nerve conduction to the extremeties of the body - so fingers, toes, etc. Because this happens, you get skin blistering, peeling, rashes, etc as the body is 'sluffing' off the skin faster as it is 'dying' faster.... (to try to explain it in VERY simple terms :redface: sorry - I try to make things as simple as possible when I explain things as a nurse.... )

So, as mentioned, creams (more so than lotions) to keep the skin hydrated so it doesn't crack or peel beyond what it already is - preferably unscented lotion, as the alcohol in the scented stuff can make the problem worse. By applying the lotion, the act of massaging the area to increase blood flow to the tissues is also extremely beneficial (and can allow mommy-child time; or for those adults it may be happening to - partner time lol ).

Be sure to let your child know that if they feel any kind of tingling/pain/etc they need to let you know so you can contact the doctor. I even get my hubby (while he is doing the foot massagey thingy lol) to take a sharper object (like a pin) and touch the ends of my toes with it (without me looking of course) to make sure I can still feel it. And, of course, actual sores need to be dealt with fairly quickly so they don't become infected and cause other issues....

I really hope I am not scaring any of you by telling you this :redface: but it is 'near and dear' to my heart right now, as I am dealing with the same thing - not so much skin peeling anymore (but I did go through that) - but the tingling of the toes thing......

Hope everything else is going well for you and yours....

Squishy cyber hugs from The Moon
:moon:

 

[dannysmom]

My son sometimes has the red, dry, tight skin on the soles of his feet. It definitely was worse right after he first became very ill ... and I think he definitely had a virus then (had strawberry tongue too) but doctors never did figure out the virus or infection. He also has the skin in between his fingers peel off occasionally (just like the foot pitures above)