Mystery swollen arm

Like FarNorth I've learned a lot on this thread!

I would just add that in my case it traveled from my little toe to my thigh in 24 hours that's how quick it is

DH had cellulitis in one arm a year or so ago and as he needs both arms to support him and weight bear as he needs 2 sticks he was seriously incapacitated by it. I was disappointed that the GP he first saw shilly-shallied and put it down to arthritis and prescribed Voltarol - which was useless. Being me, I nagged and eventually off we went to A&E. Sure enough, cellulitis.
The second time was in one leg and this time no p*sing about, got a Doctor OUT
the same morning and caught it early on.
Your DD's arm certainly sounds VERY like cellulitis.
Be aware for future reference.

I don't know about that, Eloethan. They may have done and just included it in "nothing showed up".

Friend of mine had a mystery problem with her arm a couple of years ago. Turned out to be an infection from a damaged cuticle which travelled up the arm.

I think cellulitis is quite common actually farnorth and apparently as it's a infection of the flesh it only shows in a blood test if the infection has travelled to the blood or that's my understanding My daughter had it in her arm from what she thinks was an insect bite although she never actually saw any insect or any bite but as she'd been in the countryside she put two and two together She had to be on two lots of strong antibiotics it can travel very fast and if it gets into the bloodstream can lead to sepsis so has to be taken very seriously
Thankfully your daughters antibiotics seemed to have work well and quickly

Presumably they checked for DVT?

I assumed they must have given antibiotics as they felt it was important to start treating it, nina, and that it might take time to get blood test results.
Don't know if that's right.

Thanks, BlueBelle, that's interesting.

I hadn't heard of cellulitis before this thread, so have learned something.

My friend had a massively swollen red arm because the practice nurse hit an artery instead of a vein when she was taking blood. Bit grim!

I had been stung a few times as a child with just slight swelling but some years ago I was stung by a bee on my knee while sitting on a bus. By the time we got to my stop I could barely stand or walk and had to helped from the bus. A few years later I was again stung, while picking peas for the tea and within minutes my hand and wrist looked like a blown up rubber glove about to burst. Double dose of anti-histamine and hand shrank back to near normal, though over the next few days all the stretched skin peeled off - not a pretty sight. Now I carry anti-histamine at all times as each sting seems to provoke a more extreme reaction than the last.

I ve just googled it as it made me curious having just got over it quite recently and it says blood tests are only useful in 5-15% of cellulitis cases
I think that's your answer

I recently had cellulitis from a very tiny pinprick of a scratch from athletes foot
I didn't actually swell but most people do but the redness crept bigger and bigger around my whole thigh very very quickly I needed anti biotics both intravenously and by mouth with visits to AandE I didn't have blood tests so would it have shown ?

Odd that they gave IV antibiotics if no infection. A definite mystery.

Thanks for the replies.

My DD has had a couple of allergic reactions in the past, one seemed to be to strawberries although she's fine with them now, and one was to a medication.

Maybe a reaction to something like an insect bite could have caused this, rather than an infection?

It does sound like non specific cellulitis - could have been an insect bite or contact with some toxic plant substance hence no bacteria.

H had a swollen very painful left arm (bicep to wrist) when we were on holiday once we went to a pharmacy where he was given something like voltarol cream . When home he went GP who told him if he hadn't gone to him then it could have been very serious. He didn't have blood tests but was put on a very high dose of antibiotics. Which fortunately worked. We never knew what caused it.
Glad your D is better.

Us too.

My first thought was cellulitis which would have been treated with IV antibiotics plus a possible follow up course at home. But you say the blood tests were clear, so I am puzzled.