Hives From Omnicef (Page 3) (Top voted first)

I took Omnicef 300 mg 2x a day..I took them for 11 days..was suppose to take for 3 weeks..At the palms of my hands started itching..and were very red..than my left foot started itching..I stoped taking the medicine 1 day ago...this happened on the weekend...of course...I am taking bendryl...about every four hours..Now my left calf has hives..both wrists..have hives..my bikini area..is covered with hives..and of all things..my right ear..is flame red and itches...also my right knee...I called my doctor today...she said stop the medicine..I said I did...she said take bendryl 50 mg 3 times a day..which I am..and I think more..This is so weird..that it has hit such different parts of my body..ohhh. I forgot...how could I forget...tonight..my butt started to itch...and its just covered in hives...Has anyone else had this problem with Omnicef...I think I would rather have the bladder infection than go thru this

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Yes had it everywhere not just small welps but very large ones. I had to have 2 shots and benedryl before my finally went away. Hope you eel better but I do recommend a shot of steroids to clear them up faster.

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I was on Omnicef 2x for sinus infection that wouldn't go away. I have the most horrible rash I have ever had. My armpits are raw from itching the dime size welts. And my inner thighs as well. I am so glad to know that it is the medicine and not my detergent or something. I am going to try the benedryl. Thanks for all the tips. I will never take this medicine again.

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exact same thing my 5 year old daughter was put on omnicef for a sinus infection on the 9th day she broke out in hives all over her body and is scratching so much her skin looks raw she is taking benadryl and claritin and after 4 days of intense itching they finally put her on a steroid hope this doesnt last to long she is misrable she will never take this again

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My son also has taken the generic Omincef called Cefdiner...He is 9 years old.. He also had same reaction as many. He was being treated for pneumonia. He was on 5 days treatment when started rash in abdominal and pelvic regions. It too has now spread to ALL parts of his body. Allergist said immediately it was alleric reaction from meds and stop. pediatrician thought viral..which emerged allergic...He is on antihistamines..but not working...He also gets more itching and pain when hot...This is so frustrating!! Its been more than 1 week post stopping med. anyone else have any advice??

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Hives started 2 days after I completed the 10 day cycle of Omnicef. I was going into my Dr every 3rd day to get a steroid shot for a cold or the flu. I was having an allergic reaction to Omnicef, but the steroid shots would calm down the reaction. My throat felt strange and tight. All this during Christmas holiday, with a house full of family. It was miserable, being so sick.Last monday(today is wed), I went back to my Dr. showing him my allergic welts. He agreed it was Omnicef. He gave me another steroid shot and told me to take benedryl(can take 8 pills per day. So every 4 hours I take 2. I knew something was not right, but couldn't figure it out. Until the welts came out. It could have been so much worse, my throat could have totally shut and death. I go back on Friday, to see if I need another steroid shot.

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My daughter was on Cefdinir for 10 days and one day after she was done with it she broke out in hives. They started at all her joints and spread else where all over her body. One of the hives was so large and swollen that it left this huge bruise on her abdomen. Has anyone else had any bruising from the hives?

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I am currently experiencing your exact symptoms. The worst is in my hair, and comes and goes on my face. The first day and hands and feet were swollen too. Its horrible. Ive had the hives for 4 days now and no improvement. Im taking Benadryl 50 every 5-6hrs, and am on steriods too. I hope this ends soon. Its terrible.

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I had taken omnicef last Dec. 2012 for a sinus infection two pills a day 300 mg for a month and no problem with hives. Well now I have been taking omnicef for a month, again two prescriptions for sinus infection. I ended the prescription this week on Tues. March 26, 2013. Hives broke out during the early morning hours on Thurs. March 27, 2013. I have them all over me and will be seeing the doctor today Fri, March 29, 2013. I have no energy and my symptoms are still there with the sinus infection.

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My son is 10 and this is his second time he is prescribed omnicef and this time he got hives and joints pain. Feet and hands hurt the most. He took bendryle and predistone but nothing is helping..... Day 4 and the hives are getting better but the feet and hands still work....doctor says it will take a week to go away......

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I was prescribed cefdinir, the generic for Omnicef for sinusitis. I have taken cephalosporins before and had no allergic reaction even though I'm allergic to penicillins.

After 10 days, I developed hives. I didn't realize there could be whole plaques of raised skin and also wondered why it kept moving to different parts of my body. Reading these posts has been uncanny because my reaction so closely matches the ones written about here. My pharmacist said it was an allergic reaction and to discontinue the medication.

Now, I'm beginning to wonder if this isn't about cefdinir specifically rather than cephalosporins in general. So, the question I have for to nearly everyone who posted here: Are you allergic to penicillin?

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1st time using Omnicef, I broke out in hives which was fairly easily remedied by switching antibiotics and taking Benedryl. However, from that point forward I developed random, chronic hives which could never be attributed to anything specific. At least once per month, and often once per week I had an outbreak, normally at night. One dose of Zyrtec always got the outbreaks under control. Until I was prescribed Omnicef two years later for a nasty staff infection on my finger that wouldn't heal. This time the hives were sheer misery. I couldn't work, I couldn't sleep, and neither Zyrtec, Benedryl or Allegra helped at all. I got a steriod shot and a follow up Rx of prednesone, and was advised by an allergist to take 1 dose of Zyrtec (H-1 blocker) along with 1 dose of Zantac (H-2 blocker) every morning and every night for 6 months. After that we can dial back the dosage and see if the chronic hives are beginning to resolve. I am lucky that the reaction to this medication was not even more serious the second time around, because often repeated exposure can result in more serious reaction. The allergist says it is completely safe to take double the dose of Zyrtec and it will not elevate the heart rate the will Claritin-D (or other decongestants) will do.

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Omnicef works great to control my moderate to severe acne. I use it everyday with no problems, however I gave it to my mom for an ear infection and she had first broken out in hives, and the next day it got even more severe. We quickly followed with Benadryl, and Zyrtec. Then administration of Benadryl twice a day. The allergic reaction when down when we applied a liberal amount of a powerful steroid cream, especially over problem areas like her ear.

Omnicef isn't the issue, it is a good antibiotic. Having an allergy to any drug or food will cause the same effects that most of you are experiencing.

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Hi Melanie. My daughter is having the same reaction. Hives with bruising from taking the drug. Could you please let me know what course of action you took and how long it took for your child to improve...? Thanks so much.

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My grandson 13 just finished omnicef and broke out in hives friday and is still having beakouts. It will clear up in one area and appear in another. was wondering how long did your hives last?
He is also taking benedryl. I took him to urgent care last night and they gave him a shot and his whole arm broke out where shot was given.

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My reactions to Cednifir again is almost identical to those already posted. Day 10 hives started. By end of day the whole area below my waist was covered & scalp was itching like crazy. Some smaller blotches elsewhere. I started taking 25 mgs benedryl that evening. Day 11 middle of night I woke up feeling like food was caught in my throat & realized my throat was swelling. Went to ER. IV steroids & antihistimines. That knocked out the worst hives around my waist area- those have left bruising. Day 11 was almost comical in seeing where the hives would pop up next: under my arms, left leg, right arm, back, FACE, elbows, belly button. These at least don't seem to stay in 1 area, but I am getting the hand & foot pain mentioned by some. I'm only on Day 13(from start of medicine, day 3 from stopping) now, taking benedryl 50 mgs 4 times a day, prednisone 60mgs day, 1 Tagamet a day & benedryl gel for worst itching.

Don't know what to make of all this. I AM allergic to penicillin also. It would be good to know if its simply a reaction to the cefelosporic class drugs (like Omnicef) or some kind of manmade contamination in the production/supply chain. I'm going to pass along to FDA & go get an allergy diagnosis I guess.

I don't want to run into this again that's for sure & hope that other poster's here have gotten the relief from this misery that they deserve.

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Hello all,

Well, my story is the same as everyone else's. Had an upper respiratory infection where I was prescribed omnicef. 10 days after the course was done, I broke out in massive (in size and number) hives. Everywhere, in my ears, torso, bikini area...everywhere!!! It lasted for over year. I was given a course of prednisone like everyone else, and took Zyrtec and Allegra and Benadryl which helped the symptoms, but the spontaneous welts appeared everyday for over a year. It finally stopped, but very once in a while, I'll eat something a breakout. I believe the experience caused me to be sensitive to certain foods. I am allergic to penicillin.

The extremely sad thing is, my 11 yo daughter is going through this same thing now. She had strep throat and was prescribed omnicef. I resisted the pediatrician, but she ultimately convinced me that it was the best drug for bacterial infections. I should have held my ground....now my poor girl is going to go through what I went through....I'm so angry that I wasn't more resistant!!!! She is allergic to amoxicillin...a relative of penicillin.....I pray she won't have a year long experience!!! Ugh! So angry with myself for letting this happen!!!! But at least I know what she is going through and how to comfort her.

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I am having the same problem. I took Cefdinir once before and did not have this reaction, and what's funny is that I didn't read the instructions carefully this time and I actually have been taken the drug at half the dose what I am suppose to be taking. You are suppose to take 300 mg every 12 hours, and I have been taking 300 mg every 24 hours (for a sinus infection). Thank goodness I read it wrong and wasn't taking more than I am taking, because after 7 pills, I have these painful red hives on my scalp. The entire time I have had abdominal cramping and horrible diarrhea. After reading so many other people posting similar problems with hives and diarrhea, I am going to contact my doctor tomorrow. Man, I hope they don't get worse and spread more over my scalp. The several lesions I have are so itchy and painful, and they burn.

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An update to my situation.....turns out the painful bumps on my scalp were not hives after all. It was an outbreak of psoriasis flaring up, which I didn't even know I had. I do have a few other auto immune diseases, and psoriasis is an auto immune disorder, but it can be triggered by antibiotics, and/or by infections. So I don't know if the sinus infection I was treating triggered the arrival of this new disease (psoriasis), or if it was the antibiotic itself that triggered it. I have a feeling that it was the antibiotic, because every time I took a pill, about 30 minutes later the bumps on my scalp would start burning and itching. It was definitely part of the problem. I treated the red bumps by rubbing in just one drop of oregano oil over all the bumps (a natural disinfectant), and then I liberally applied aloe vera gel, to the scalp not just the hair. The redness went away and the bumps shriveled up and formed scabs. The itching and burning stopped. Now, many weeks later, I still have a few of the scabs left, but they don't bother me. I am never going to take this antibiotic again. I can't risk that it will cause another outbreak. It was horrible.

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I am so glad to have found these posts. My daughter was prescribed cefdinir for a sinus infection and some cough medicine containing codeine and on day 9 she woke up complaining of severe pain in her hands and feet and was covered in hives. I stopped all medicines and the doctor said it might have been a reaction to the codeine. He prescribed hydroxizine and prednisolone. She could hardly stand to walk because the soles of her feet were so fat. The next day the hives moved to every joint in her body and she couldn't move for the pain. She also was very hot to the touch and couldn't stand it if we touched her. Wherever there was swelling what looked like bruises appeared. Both of her legs look like one big bruise. The next day it moved on to her face and ears and neck. I took her back to the doctor and he said it was probably not an allergic reaction but something viral. He really didn't know. He said to switch to Benadryl for the itching and that the prednisolone was obviously not effective because if it was an allergic reaction then it would have helped.

The next day her whole face was covered in addition to her legs, arms, back, pretty much everywhere. I decided to take her to a dermatologist that same day because I was at my wits end and immediately they said it was an allergic reaction probably to the cefdinir. They said to continue the prednisolone for a couple of weeks and go back to hydroxizine and also add Zyrtec. They also said to avoid the cephalosporin class of antibiotics which I plan to do. They said it will probably take several weeks to resolve. I feel so bad for my daughter because the 8th grade formal is this weekend. Hopefully the hives will clear up enough for her to go.

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Daughter is 12, took Cefdinir only for 2 days and broke out in tiny red itchy and painful spots. She has eczema and this is NOT an eczema flare up. I knew right away it was the Cefdinir. I threw it out and went straight to the urgent care and he said yes, this was an allergic reaction to the drug. He gave her a 5 day course of steroids and she is taking Benadryl as well. This is day 3 of the outbreak and the spots are now on her torso, front and back, ankles, thighs and wrists. Cool cloths help keep her skin cool bc she's very hot to the touch. School starts in 2 days and I am praying she is better by then. Reading all these reviews makes my heart break and my blood boil that this drug is still available. I am also going to notify the prescribing doctor of my daughters condition. I hope I stopped it early enough, but it's not looking to promising. Ugh!

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