Question Hi Dr. Adler - I had sent a question a few days ago (on Christmas Eve!) about my two and a half year old son breaking out in a rash starting on day eight of his Augmentin dose. We did find an Emergi-Center open Christmas morning, and the physician was very certain it was not chicken pox or anything contagious....and that it was indeed an allergic reaction to the Augmentin, which we had stopped giving the morning before. Here's my question. How long can we expect this rash/hives to linger? It comes and goes...sometimes he barely has any, but generally later in the day, it gets worse. Sometimes it is just big blotchy red areas, or a blotch on his face, other times it raises somewhat and there are hives/bumps. The physician explained it is clearly an allergy....as if you lightly scratch the red areas or touch them, they raise...you can actually see where he was scratching.
We called our ped. office and they said if it's not gone by Wednesday to bring him in. The rash doesn't bother him much and we did see an improvement today. Is it normal for this to linger for so many days after we stopped the Augmentin? Thanks so much. Linda
Answer Most reactions to medications will resolve within a few days, but they can last for several weeks. Is he taking any other medicines? An antihistamine will probably help. Benadryl--by mouth, not on the skin (over-the-counter) or Atarax (prescription) will usually help reactions like this to get better. I advise my patients to keep using the antihistamine for a few days after the rash is completely gone, because it tends to come back otherwise. If it comes back, or does not get better with an antihistamine, then a steroid (by mouth--not on the skin) will usually help.
I agree with your pediatrician--if it's not gone in a couple of days, he should be seen.
