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Dh. Can It Appear Anywhere?

mikehall117

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mikehall117 Rookie
mikehall117
Posted

I have been suffering from a red itchy scaly rash on my scalp for about 15 -20 years. The rash is completely linked to my diet and when I eliminate gluten from my diet (or all carbohydrates as I did a few years ago) the rash almost totally clears after just a few weeks and only returns when I introduce gluten again. I don't have any pictures but it certainly looks like DH - red patches with white or pink water-filled pimples that can be flaky and itchy. If I scratch them off my whole scalp seems damp afterwards.

I sometimes also get breakouts on my chest and eyebrows too but never anywhere else. The itching can be controlled with a medicated shampoo which also helps the flaking skin but it never clears up unless I change my diet. I saw a doctor many years ago who said it was just cerebral dermatitis and prescribed the shampoo.

I am currently gluten-free and have no rash whatsoever, just some slight itching now on then on the back of my head. However I had heard that DH can take many months to clear and my rash seems to vanish really quite quickly.

Does this sound like DH? I know that it typically appears on the elbows and knees but I would like to know if anyone has experienced it on their scalp and had it clear up so rapidly?

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RiceGuy Collaborator
RiceGuy
Posted

Yes, DH can occur anyplace on the body, as far as I know.

Many on this board report rashes of various sorts, not all of which manifest as "classic" DH. However, when it clears on a gluten-free diet, it seems obvious that it is related. So, in your case I'd say, that it really doesn't matter if it is DH, because going gluten-free seems to be the answer.

Many report their DH/rashes diminishing in about a week or so, while for others it takes several weeks, or even months. We're all different, except for the fact that gluten harms us.

flourgirl Apprentice
flourgirl
Posted

Hi! I've long since decided that there is no such thing as "classic" DH! As I've read posts here, it IS different for everybody. For myself, I have literally had it everywhere. Staying gluten free, means staying free of DH as well. I understand that it can take a year for your skin to stop being so sensitive. Finally....I can have salt without a nasty rash. When I was having them...I had the rashes for about 3 weeks (or longer) each time. I'm glad that you were able to discover the cause. Whether it is actually DH or not (probably is), isn't it great to know that you know how to get rid of it and keep it away? Hope I was of some help :)

  • 3 weeks later...
Rebecca's mom Rookie
Rebecca's mom
Posted

A couple of years before our youngest was diagnosed with celiac disease, she got what we thought was ringworm on her scalp a couple of times. It itched like crazy, and because her hair broke off in those areas, her pedi diagnosed it as such. He said his daughter got that a lot as well - both of them have Down syndrome, so I thought maybe they were simply more susceptible to ringworm of the scalp.

Fast forward a year or so, and both my daughter and the pedi's daughter were diagnosed with celiac disease (after the pedi's wife was diagnosed). Her pedi decided to screen ALL of his DS patients for celiac disease, regardless of their symptoms (or lack thereof, in my daughter's case). Guess what? Since being on a GFD, no more "ringworm"!

My bumps never itched, except when they erupted. Because of that, my dermatologist didn't think to check for DH - I endured 3 years of sores before we figured out that it might be DH! I have been on a GFD for a year, and almost all of the lesions are gone. I have heard that it can take between 1-3 years to completely get rid of the lesions, but the antibodies can stay in the skin up to 10 years after starting a GFD.

Hope this helps!

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