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rash or bites from Akumal - 1/23/2013 5:31:53 PM
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janice1234
Posts: 4
Joined: 1/23/2013
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Hi my family and I were in beautiful Akumal before Christmas and had an absolutely wonderful time there, will be back for sure!
BUT, one of my sons on the last day noticed he had what looked like bites on his lower torso and legs. I thought it was perhaps from being in his board shorts too long, snorkelling, suntanning etc.
Anyways it has been 4 weeks since we came home. 4 dr. later they don't seem to know what it is. He is going to a dermatologist in 3 weeks but the guy is going crazy (as am I with worry) with the itch. They look like bites, some are apart, some are clumped together. They don't hurt but are incredibly itchy.
The rest of us (4) got a few bites on our backs that we noticed after we got back and they are itchy if scratched but not if we don't touch them.
He has been treated for bacterial (no help), for scabies (no help) and even heavy duty antihistamines don't help.
We rented a private home (beautiful) but I'm wondering about the thoroughness of washing and drying the towels that we were given each day, I can't think of anything else.
And strange that it happened on the day we left too
thx for ANY help:)
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RE: rash or bites from Akumal - 1/23/2013 7:18:03 PM
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Suz_and_Kirk
Posts: 16
Joined: 3/5/2012
From: Lancaster, OH
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Wow....sounds familiar. My fiancee and I stayed at the GBP Tulum over Christmas, and when we got home, he started noticing what appeared to be bites on mostly his legs, but also some on his arms. Some of them were small and real close together, and others were huge like welts. The main symptom is that they were itching like CRAZY! Poor thing. I had a couple of tiny bites, but they went away quickly. Our first thought was bedbugs. But then, why wasn't I getting bitten? We checked, no bedbugs. Next thought...fleas. We do have cats...I checked them all, no fleas. And once again, why wasn't I getting bitten?
After doing extensive research online, I came to the conclusion that he got bit by sandflies when we were there (aka noseeums, biting midges, etc). You don't know you're getting bitten at the time, because they're small and they inject an anesthetic while they're biting you. But in the days and weeks after, some people react to them horribly. My poor fiancee has went through two rounds of steroids, which helped them calm down, but as soon as he was done, they started to come back. Now he's on an antibiotic and prescription steroid cream for the itching (and also over the counter Zyrtec), and basically, they just have to go away on their own (which can take months!). It's the souvenir he didn't really want.
Do some looking online.....there are lots of topics about sandflies...he may have gotten bitten, and had the same delayed reaction to them that my fiancee did.
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RE: rash or bites from Akumal - 1/23/2013 7:34:45 PM
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sandinmypants
Posts: 4401
Joined: 2/17/2007
From: Iowa
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Or try molluscum contagiosum - my son has picked it up twice in MX. Let me know if you want further info.
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RE: rash or bites from Akumal - 1/23/2013 7:40:34 PM
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Billiam
Posts: 586
Joined: 8/12/2004
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Janice:
It is more likely than not, no-see-ums, (midges). Different people react slightly differently to them. Some will suffer for several weeks following exposure.
I doubt is is poisonwood. While present, poison wood is not that common in Akumal. Also the irritant, urisol, is the same as in poison ivy and would yield a similar, but more intense case of dermatitis.
Belated welcome to the group,
Billiam
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RE: rash or bites from Akumal - 1/23/2013 7:55:55 PM
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1runjuan
Posts: 4318
Joined: 10/31/2011
From: stagecoach,Co.
Status: offline
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quote:
ORIGINAL: Billiam
Janice:
It is more likely than not, no-see-ums, (midges). Different people react slightly differently to them. Some will suffer for several weeks following exposure.
I doubt is is poisonwood. While present, poison wood is not that common in Akumal. Also the irritant, urisol, is the same as in poison ivy and would yield a similar, but more intense case of dermatitis.
Belated welcome to the group,
Billiam
well, speak of the devil.
good to see you, billiam.
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RE: rash or bites from Akumal - 1/23/2013 9:36:33 PM
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Vancouver Sundog
Posts: 5971
Joined: 10/1/2006
From: North Vancouver
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I get these bites as well
No see ums / sand fleas / lots of names
These are small flying bugs that bite that usually lay their eggs in the sand
Just apply a non itch / antibiotic creme and let time take care of it
Some of mine don't disappear for 6-8 weeks
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RE: rash or bites from Akumal - 1/24/2013 12:15:08 AM
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janice1234
Posts: 4
Joined: 1/23/2013
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Thank you everyone for replying....WOW! You know Whale the picture of your son's bites look very like my son's!
Thank you all for your suggestions of treatment and what it could be:)
Knowledge is Power
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RE: rash or bites from Akumal - 1/24/2013 10:19:25 AM
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reefhugger
Posts: 8906
Joined: 8/25/2004
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I've gotten horrible no-seeum bites, lots of them. Last time was at a beach club in Cozumel (and I was sitting on a chair, not even in the sand). Bug bites and marine stings react very badly for me. These were on my upper thighs mostly (I had brushed some sand off the chair, apparently that didn't really help). On me they welt up and meld together into big, nasty, itchy, painful raw red blotches. I always have cortisone cream with me (the extra strong one, 1.5%) and Benadryl spray. All I can do is wash the affected area off with a mild soap and water and try and keep it dry and out of the sun as much as possible. the sun after the bites for me seems to make the reaction get worse. The first day or two I use the topical benadryl which usually helps with the keeping it from getting really disgusting. After that it can take a couple weeks for it to all go away and I use the cortisone at 2x a day. I've it take as long a 4 weeks for completely go away.
I've tried calamine, but the cortisone seems to work better.
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RE: rash or bites from Akumal - 1/24/2013 10:25:45 AM
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reefhugger
Posts: 8906
Joined: 8/25/2004
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quote:
ORIGINAL: sandinmypants
Or try molluscum contagiosum - my son has picked it up twice in MX. Let me know if you want further info.
That can get really nasty. Considering the virus is spread by contact (in a resort I'm thinking towels, the beach chairs, playgrounds, etc.) if a place is cleaning properly and properly washing their towels and linens, there's really no excuse for it. That's awful that he's gotten it twice. Were both times at the same place? I hope you let them know about it.
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RE: rash or bites from Akumal - 1/24/2013 1:07:12 PM
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reefhugger
Posts: 8906
Joined: 8/25/2004
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quote:
ORIGINAL: crunch
quote:
On me they welt up and meld together into big, nasty, itchy, painful raw red blotches.
My torso ones did that. And god help you if you give in to temptation and scratch them. I now pour on the Deet and haven't had any since.
I'm allergic to DEET... if I use it I'll end up with a similar looking mess, but it'll be everywhere the bug spray was. I use an all natural, biodegradable product that actually works (and it smells nice.. a bit of a vanilla and lemony scent, very light)
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RE: rash or bites from Akumal - 1/24/2013 3:46:04 PM
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panesh
Posts: 1443
Joined: 11/27/2009
From: San Rafael, CA
Status: offline
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Take some Afterbite with you also. It has ammonia in it and works pretty well. We take the clip on portable OFF fans with us and they do a great job at dinner outdoors for mosquitos.
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