Plaquenil --rash??

[kwolfsheimer]

OK-- I've been on generic Plaquenil (hydroxychloroquine) since January.  I was sooooo happy that finally I had a rheumy who immediately recognized my need for help.

So I was taking 400 mg (two pills) a day-- one at night and one in the morning.  However, i started getting really bad ringing (tinnitus) in my ears at night-- it would wake me up.  He didn't think that would be a side-effect, but said to cut back to one pill in the morning and gradually go back up after a week or so, if I was free of the ear ringing.

Well, the ear ringing did stop at night (I do have unexplained bouts during the day).  However, I just stayed on the one pill/ day. But a month and a half ago, I developed a rash all over the palms of my hands and the soles of my feet.  It looked like white braille.  Then the skin underneath got really dry and burned like fire.  Now it has been peeling some.  This cycle has been going on for weeks!!  I've tried every cream out there.  I've been taking Benedryl every night.  I've never had psoriasis, but thought maybe this was something new with the Lupus.

So I broke down and called again today. He said to get off the plaquenil.  He said that he wasn't sure if the rash/ peeling hands were a true side effect.

So has anybody else had weird rashes like this??  I hate to give up the Plaquenil because it has helped TREMENDOUSLY with the joint pain in my hands and hips.  But i will try to get off it and see if this rash clears up.  It itches so badly!! And the skin on my hands feel tight-- like dried glue is stretching the skin, but it looks all wrinkly and red.

Any ideas??

[Scottietottie]

Hi 

I've had the bubbling, burning rash on palms of hands and soles of feet but it happened way before I was ever on Plaquenil. I was told it was pompholyx eczema although it didn't really look like the pictures.

Take care - Scottie 

[tracyj]

Hi,

I get a rash from sun exposure while I am plaquenil.  In my case it is definitely a side effect of plaquenil.

Take care

Tracy

[AmyB14]

            (Dyshidrotic eczema) or pompholyx eczema
1.  finger feels tight and has little blisters deep under the skin.
2.  finger gets sore to the touch, but itches
3.  blisters get bigger and eventually pop either under the skin or through the surface
4.  skin then dries out and cracks and peels
5.  where the blisters were is a round little scab deeper in the skin
6.  skin gets red and wrinkly and feels like a third degree burn due to deep peeling

Hi...I have been diagnosed with dyshidrosis (Dyshidrotic eczema) or pompholyx eczema.  It started for me right around the time I started Plaquenil.  It might have been a coincidence, but I have been off it for a couple years now and still struggle with it. Kwolfsheimer has described it exactly.  I was told by my dermatologist to buy Certain Dry roll on deodorant.  When it first starts to flare up, I usually get a tight feeling and small blisters form deep under the skin.  It can be on your hands and feet, but mine has affected only 2 fingertips on each hand. The Certain Dry, has to be roll on not the solid.  It has a chemical that paralyzes the sweat glands which is what causes the blisters to fill with water.  Use it sparingly as it will really dry out your skin.  I apply it, rub it in and wait till the next day.   If you have blisters, they will turn brown and start to dry out.  I then put triple antibiotic ointment (Neosporin) on the area and let it sit for awhile and then rub it in.  This tends to help prevent the skin from cracking and peeling and helps it heal faster.  I apply the ointment 2x a day until healed.  I reapply the deodorant as necessary till the blisters dry out, but only every other day. If I overuse the deodorant, it will dry out and crack open the skin.  I find that I will have a flare up if I use certain hand lotions or tanning lotion as well.  I am trying to find a moisturizing lotion I can use, but no luck so far.
Hope this helps...It has helped me tremendously!   

[AmyB14]

This is in regards to my earlier post...Whenever I expose my hands to chemicals.  I put Neosporin on my fingertips and cover them with bandaids.  The bandaids don't usually stay on very well so I use cloth hockey tape over the bandaid.  My dermatologist also said to try and keep my hands dry and avoid getting them wet when I am having a flare up.  Hope this helps...
Amy

[kwolfsheimer]

Amy,

Are you still on the Plaquenil?

I got off it, but weeks later, I had another breakout-- less severe with the rash, but my finger tips got real tight and started peeling again. Even now on my left hand, I have a few Braille-like bumps.

I see my rheumy this Wednesday.  Since I've been off the Plaquenil, my joint pain has come back full fold. I don't know if I am just thinking it was really better on the plaquenil, but it seemed to me that I really noticed a difference.  But I don't want to have my hands feel like they are on fire all the time. It was incovenient-- and maybe a price to pay for the rest of me feeling normal.  I have also noticed since I stopped the Plaquenil that my fatigue is UNBEARABLE.  I go to bed at 6:00 every evening-- so exhausted i can't even eat or fix dinner for my family. I wake up just as exhausted.

[kwolfsheimer]

BTW-- Thank you all for your responses. I'm going to go into my doc appt this week with the eczema question and see what he thinks. I wish I had more on my hands to show him.  He wanted me to come in when it was going gangbusters but I just started a new job and couldn't get off work.

[AmyB14]

I am off plaquenil, but unfortunately, I still struggle with pompholyx.     I don't know if it was a coincidence or not, but it started around the same time.  Using hand lotion or extreme stress can bring on a breakout.  Do you have blisters deep under the skin?  That is a big factor in pompholyx.  Good luck and if you continue to have the issue, you might as well try Plaquenil again.  Unfortunately, when I did, it intensified so I had to stop.  Try the remedy I told you about, it made a world of difference.  My breakouts are MUCH more managable and it usually never gets to the point of peeling so deep that touching anything is painful.  Good Luck!!   

Definition off Mayo Clinic website
Dyshidrosis, also known as dyshidrotic eczema or pompholyx, is a skin condition in which small, fluid-filled blisters (vesicles) occur on the palms of your hands or the soles of your feet, or both. The blisters that occur in dyshidrosis generally last around three weeks and cause intense itching. Once the blisters of dyshidrosis dry, cracks and grooves (fissures) form, which can be painful. Treatment for dyshidrosis most often includes topical creams, wet compresses and ultraviolet light therapy to improve appearance and ease symptoms.

[sinauv]

Hello,

I have never been on Plaquenil. However I did develop a rash type you have described on my palms. It got infected and yes the itch is unbearable. I saw the doctor who prescribed Dermol topical cream which helped and antibiotics for the infection. It controlled the rash but did not cure. I have noticed the same little bumps spread to my fingertips and side of fingers how ever they have not yet developed into a itchy rash..I'm hoping I don't have another breakout but Dermol seems to be keeping it under control.

Kind Regards

[Scottietottie]

Hi 

I got the pompholyx before I ever went near Plaquenil.

[Deb 27]

After many years on plaquenil, I got the tinnitus. I agree it was much worse at night and would wake me up. We cut back my dose. I also got a rash from plaquenil when I went out in the sun. Funny, when I was taking name brand plaquenil, I didn't seem to have any problems, but it got too pricey for my budget. It seems my drug store changes their supplier of plaquenil every few months too.

I hope you can get some relief from that rash.

[finallyadx]

After being on generic plaquenil for about two or three years, I developed a rash and a horrible itch each day within an hr of taking it, so I called my rheumy...he put me a short taper of prednisone and switched me to brand name plaquenil - I do not get the rash or the itching any longer...it could be that it was not the plaquenil but rather my odd body with odd symptoms that I have here and there with autoimmune issues but it seems to have made a difference for me...