My 3 year old has a mysterious rash that appeared yesterday suddenly on one side of his neck. It has now spread all around his neck, up to his cheeks, and around his ears. I also notice it is very light on his hands and forearms. I thought it was a contact rash caused by the new jacket he was wearing but since it is spreading still and getting worse, I'm not so sure. His dad gets a rash from sun allergy. The 3 yr old's rash appeared not long after going outside. Maybe that? The rash on his neck is red and slightly raised. It seems it is only where his shirt wasnt covering him. The rash on his cheeks are tiny raised slightly red bumps that give his cheeks a rough feeling. He is acting just fine and scratches it very rarely. If it gets worse or I am still concerned about it on Monday, we will go to the doctor. Any ideas, Mommas?
You don't need to wait until Monday to call the doctor, call the 24 hour nurse line and discuss it with them.
Rashes can be about anything from allergies (to food or soap or laundry detergent/softener, etc) to many diseases.
Bright red cheeks are a symptom of Fifth disease.
Definitely see the doctor soon as you can.
If you think it is an allergy you could try giving him Benadryl and see if that makes it go away.
If you Google contact dermatitis - it can appear as little red bumps, hives, or just redness. We've had that. Eczema can also appear like raised red bumps which seem rough. Doesn't always have to itch.
I'm not familiar with sun allergies. Is it similar to what your husband experiences?
If it were me, I'd call the doctor's office if it was bad, and see if they would recommend Benedryl. I always check first. Or wait till Monday when you see the doctor.
Good luck
I don't like to mess around with rashes that are spreading that quickly. When that happened to my child, we went to Urgent Care.
Sounds like it could be hives. But call the doctor. Ask if you can take a picture of it and send it to them.
Our son has had hives twice. The first time it appeared out of nowhere and we have no idea what caused it. They started with what looked like a mosquito bite on the back of his neck. Within 24 hours he was covered head to toe. He acted like nothing was out of the ordinary. There was nothing new in his diet, no change in soaps or lotions, no new clothing, no new experiences. The second time it was a reaction to an antibiotic he was taking, but didn't show up until day 7 of taking the antibiotic. Started the same way, but got really itchy.
