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Dr. Andrew Rynne
MD
Dr. Andrew Rynne

Family Physician

Exp 50 years

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Headache, Night Sweats, CT Scan Shows Sinus Infection, Red Plaques On Skin. Any Ideas?

My mother-in-law is 76 years old, she has been suffering from headaches for over 3 months. She also has night sweats . She had a CT scan done and all her sinuses are badly infected . She has been on steriods and antibiotics for them and has been seen by an ENT specialist who has blown out the easier to reach sinuses. She still has the headaches, she also gets red plaques on her skin for no reason and then they go away. The specialist seems to think she has allergies and will test her next week with a special allergy test that is subcutaneous instead of the pricks on the surface of the skin. She has had several stents put in her heart several years ago and her breathing is not as good as it could be be other than that she is good. I am not convinced that it is allergies. Any ideas?
Thu, 18 Oct 2012
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Allergist and Immunologist,  's  Response
Hello,
Headaches and night sweats can have several different causes and hope the CT scan of the paranasal sinuses also covered the head and excluded intracranial pathologies.
Also thyroid function test would be an important test here.
The red plaques are probably unrelated to the headaches and night sweats in time, and if they are itchy red lesions slightly raised and disappear without a trace it means urticarial eruptions. Here too thyroid autoimmunity plays a role and therefore best to exclude with TPO antibodies.
I do not knwo what subcutaneous tests your doctor is going to offer but cannot be more sensitive than skin prick tests.
Occasionally multople cardiac medications can cause the urticaria, so please check these out and discuss with your doctor.
80% of patients with urticaria do NOT have allergies.
Long acting antihistamines non-sedative are usually fine but in the elderly needs some caution as it causes dryness of mucosae.
Hope this helps.
Thanks.
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Headache, Night Sweats, CT Scan Shows Sinus Infection, Red Plaques On Skin. Any Ideas?

Hello, Headaches and night sweats can have several different causes and hope the CT scan of the paranasal sinuses also covered the head and excluded intracranial pathologies. Also thyroid function test would be an important test here. The red plaques are probably unrelated to the headaches and night sweats in time, and if they are itchy red lesions slightly raised and disappear without a trace it means urticarial eruptions. Here too thyroid autoimmunity plays a role and therefore best to exclude with TPO antibodies. I do not knwo what subcutaneous tests your doctor is going to offer but cannot be more sensitive than skin prick tests. Occasionally multople cardiac medications can cause the urticaria, so please check these out and discuss with your doctor. 80% of patients with urticaria do NOT have allergies. Long acting antihistamines non-sedative are usually fine but in the elderly needs some caution as it causes dryness of mucosae. Hope this helps. Thanks.