<<Disclaimer: Verify this information before applying it to your situation.>>

Dear list members,

 Thank-you for the many responses to my questions on the location of DH. I have
 copied your responses as follows.

 Wishing you all a most joyous and GF holiday season.

 Barb N. WI, USA

 Could that painful itchy rash be...Shingles?

 Having suffered with dh for over 30 years before diagnosis, I feel like an
 expert.  Mine started on my knees, then went to my elbows.  I had it on my
 scalp, eyebrows, backs of my legs and many other places.  Bottom-line, it
 isn't just on one's arms and hands.  However, it is generally symmetrical.  If
 it is behind one knee, it will be behind the other one if it is coming from
 what you eat.  If it is coming from something you are touching, it could be
 just one side of the body.


 It generally occurs on the elbows and knees, buttocks or scalp. It starts out
 as small fluid filled blisters that after they have broken open, look like a
 scabbed knee or elbow.

 I have a large, severe area on my lower left leg; it's become my barometer in
 an otherwise nearly asymptomatic existence.

 DH can appear anywhere.

 You need to treat DH from the inside; topical treatments only
 provide temporary relief.

 I have found most relief in Dapsone combined on occasion
 with a topical anesthetic and topical steroids.  Avoidance
 of gluten is crucial.

 You need a dermatologist with specific experience treating DH.

  I was very itchy at the base of my spine a couple of weeks ago, but
 fortunately it didn't blister.  I have read that DH does appear on the
 buttocks.  My sister gets very itchy on her hands.  (She has not yet
 been diagnosed as Celiac.  Her results will be available next week.)

 My 15-year-old son had a rash (not sure if DH) on his inner thighs for
 a few months which was extremely itchy.  We cut up a leaf of aloe vera
 cactus and rubbed the gel on twice a day.  Within 5 days, the rash was
 gone.  (He is also having a blood test next week.)

 I had DH on my knee recently and after cutting up a mango to eat, I
 rubbed the skin of the mango on my knee and it felt good.  I presume
 papaya would give the same effect.  I have been GF for nearly three
 weeks.  The DH on my knee and elbow has nearly gone.  I'm hoping it
 will return as I want to have it diagnosed as DH because I'm not
 having a biopsy.

  I had my first outbreak of this rash which lasted for about 4-6 weeks.  It was
 miserable.  Started around my lower legs above the ankles and lower forearms.
 It worked up to my knees and then on thighs.  The arms were predominantly on
 the forearms but some were on the upper arms.   It itched so profusely I
 couldn't stop scratching--bled then.  Oh, so miserable.  I really feel for
 people with this all the time.  Anyway, I did some research on the Internet,
 and apparently, it also gets on the back and buttocks.    I found the only
 thing that helped me was using Cortisone cream available without a
 prescription.  It helped stop the itching--I used it 2-3 times a day.   It
 really helped me until the rash cleared up.

 I got a rash I suspect to be DH (I haven't been officially diagnosed, but have
 many symptoms of CD) and it was mostly on my tush and my knee.  If you read
 the websites that are out there and look up DH, most of them say it's common
 on the "buttocks, knees, and elbows".  Hip is pretty close, as far as I'm
 concerned.  And people on this list have mentioned having it all sorts of
 places; on their eyelids, even.  So you're probably correct that you have it.