plain jane Posted June 3, 2011 Share Posted June 3, 2011 I just noticed a bullseye rash on my preschooler. It's around a bite and the whole area is puffy. :( No tick in sight. It's in a really obvious spot on his body so it's not like it's been a long time since and I've not noticed it. I am sure that there was nothing there last night. Does the rash crop up so fast? I don't even think there was any sign of a bite there before. :confused: What does the bullseye rash mean? That he has lymes? Or that it was a tick? I've been reading about antibiotic treatment but most of them are high dose for 30 days and not for young kids. I'm hoping the doctor will know what to do but I'm not holding my breath. We have terrible, TERRIBLE doctors at our local clinic and I'm worried they won't treat this properly. :( What do I need to know, ladies? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mmasmommy Posted June 3, 2011 Share Posted June 3, 2011 I just noticed a bullseye rash on my preschooler. It's around a bite and the whole area is puffy. :( No tick in sight. It's in a really obvious spot on his body so it's not like it's been a long time since and I've not noticed it. I am sure that there was nothing there last night. Does the rash crop up so fast? I don't even think there was any sign of a bite there before. :confused: What does the bullseye rash mean? That he has lymes? Or that it was a tick? I've been reading about antibiotic treatment but most of them are high dose for 30 days and not for young kids. I'm hoping the doctor will know what to do but I'm not holding my breath. We have terrible, TERRIBLE doctors at our local clinic and I'm worried they won't treat this properly. :( What do I need to know, ladies? :grouphug: Bulls eye rash means Lyme disease. Please insist on the proper treatment. I just blogged/posted about this today. http://thisrealmomslife.blogspot.com/2011/06/our-journey-with-lyme-disease.html Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
plain jane Posted June 3, 2011 Author Share Posted June 3, 2011 :grouphug: Bulls eye rash means Lyme disease. Please insist on the proper treatment. I just blogged/posted about this today. http://thisrealmomslife.blogspot.com/2011/06/our-journey-with-lyme-disease.html Do you know how soon it appears after a bite? Just so I can figure where it came from? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mmasmommy Posted June 3, 2011 Share Posted June 3, 2011 Michael's rash appeared the day after I removed the tick. I would guess 2-3 days after the bite. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JudoMom Posted June 3, 2011 Share Posted June 3, 2011 Early on when we were trying to figure out what was wrong with my middle son, my ped. went ahead and treated him for Lymes. He would've been around 3 years old, and she treated him with a long course of abx, so I know it can be done in young children. I would absolutely have any of my boys treated for Lymes if they had a bullseye rash. The risks are too great and the tests can be unreliable. :grouphug: Like you needed another thing, right? :grouphug: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mmasmommy Posted June 3, 2011 Share Posted June 3, 2011 Just a head's up, if they want to test him for Lyme it will not show up now. (if it ever does) It takes 4-6 weeks for the body to start producing Lyme antibodies. Also the standard Lyme blood test checks for something like 10 strains when there are thought to be hundreds of different ones. I'm not trying to scare you, just arm you with knowledge, something I didn't have when we started this. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Occasionally Posted June 3, 2011 Share Posted June 3, 2011 I just noticed a bullseye rash on my preschooler. It's around a bite and the whole area is puffy. :( No tick in sight. It's in a really obvious spot on his body so it's not like it's been a long time since and I've not noticed it. I am sure that there was nothing there last night. Does the rash crop up so fast? I don't even think there was any sign of a bite there before. :confused: What does the bullseye rash mean? That he has lymes? Or that it was a tick? I've been reading about antibiotic treatment but most of them are high dose for 30 days and not for young kids. I'm hoping the doctor will know what to do but I'm not holding my breath. We have terrible, TERRIBLE doctors at our local clinic and I'm worried they won't treat this properly. :( What do I need to know, ladies? I've never dealt with Lyme Disease myself, but maybe taking a picture of the rash now would help if it goes away before you can get to the doctor (or if you want a second opinion after the terrible doctors at your clinic.) I think I remember reading that the rash can dissipate quickly. :grouphug: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lakotajm Posted June 3, 2011 Share Posted June 3, 2011 You might also want to consider the possibility of Brown Recluse bite. My daughter had this once and it makes a rash similar to what you describe-and would seem more likely if you did not see a tick there. Lakota Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RanchGirl Posted June 3, 2011 Share Posted June 3, 2011 I has a bullseye rash recently. I was advised here to take a picture, make a dr appt. and get an rx for 28 days of doxycycline. I believe that is the minimum treatment plan. I was glad I had a pic to show the dr because it disappeared in one day. The dr agreed that it was a bullseye and had to be treated. Athough she would have been happy with 21 days, she agreed to the 28 days abx. Lyme is scary!! Good luck! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
plain jane Posted June 3, 2011 Author Share Posted June 3, 2011 Ugh. I am FREAKING out. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sputterduck Posted June 3, 2011 Share Posted June 3, 2011 Ugh. I am FREAKING out. As would I. Make sure the get the antibiotics. :grouphug: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OH_Homeschooler Posted June 3, 2011 Share Posted June 3, 2011 I had some really bad bug bites last year with a bullseye rash (I think I had one on each forearm). The bullseyes appeared within hours of being outside on a really buggy night and grew really big. I was sure I had brown recluse bites or something so I went to the doctor and he said they were likely just infected mosquito bites. Got antibiotics and steroids and was back to normal quickly. So, just wanted to reassure you that it's possibly not Lyme disease or a brown recluse bite. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Remudamom Posted June 3, 2011 Share Posted June 3, 2011 You don't need to wonder. You need to get him on 30 days worth of minocycline. (better for lyme than doxy) Any side effect from the treatment are nothing compared to what lyme will do to him. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fairfarmhand Posted June 3, 2011 Share Posted June 3, 2011 I have allergic reactions to tick bites that sound exactly like what you are talking about. EVERY tick bite I have ever gotten looks like that. It may be Lyme or not. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sleepymommy Posted June 3, 2011 Share Posted June 3, 2011 See if you can locate 2 puncture wounds on the bite area. If yes, it's likely a spider bite. I, personally, would probably still try to get a round of antibiotics. Ds6 had a 3 week course of amoxicillan last summer and is currently on another round for a recent tick bite (which we may stop since we found the tick did not test positive for lyme). Clean the area well with hydrogen peroxide or alcohol and put some neosporin on there in the mean time. :grouphug: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
newlifemom Posted June 3, 2011 Share Posted June 3, 2011 They can come up pretty fast. My dr, did not test ds [who was 16 months at the time] just gave him 3 weeks of abx and he was fine. I would not worry about testing, just the abx. Oh and I agree about taking a picture. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pink and Green Mom Posted June 3, 2011 Share Posted June 3, 2011 When my son was 3 or 4, he had what I thought was a new freckle on his abdomen. Found out the next evening on closer inspection that it was a tick that I pulled off. When he woke up the next morning he had a very faint bullseye rash (and another tick lodged in his privates that required the doctor to remove...). We went straight to the doctor where they gave him the 21 days of antibiotics. I remember the doctor saying tick + rash = treat for lyme. They didn't do the test. We are in a very lyme prevalent area. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
~Kirsten~ Posted June 3, 2011 Share Posted June 3, 2011 Also, deer ticks are so, so tiny! Seriously, like speck of dirt tiny! So though you didn't see the tick itself, it may have been there anyway a few days ago. :grouphug: Please, don't mess around with a bullseye. The consequences of untreated Lyme are NOT worth it (my daughter contracted Lyme around 2.5 years old, and we tested for it--negative; within 8 months, she had full-blown arthritic Lyme in addition to many behavioral issues that we were calling "terrible threes"). It's possible that it's something else, especially since I didn't think the bullseyes were usually puffy. BUT, I'd do the 28 days. Insist on it, loudly and repeatedly. I hate antibiotics, especially in such young ones, but it's so much better than the alternative. And, if you wait until you can get a positive test result, you could be putting your child through 6 weeks or so of horrible side effects. Again, :grouphug:! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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