Age: 65.0
Sex: M
Vaccine: COVID19, COVID19, COVID19, COVID19
Symptoms: Swelling
Clinical narrative: Friday: I noticed first on the back of my neck, right where the spine comes up into the skull, It felt like I had dozens of bug bites and it itched a lot. That area soon swoll up until it stretched to be about an inch off the back of my neck. It grew until it began creating pressure on my eardrums.  Saturday: I called Dr, and the doctor who I spoke with thought I had shingles, even though it was on both sides of my head. She ordered large dosage of Zoverax Sunday: The rash was worse but only growing where hair was thick; my crotch scalp and armpits.  Went to an emergency care office where they weren't sure what caused the problem but confirmed that it was creating substantial pressure on my eardrums and that it was beginning to spread beyond just where hair was growing.  They did a COVID test which was negative. The doctor gave me a very large steroid shot and put me on 10 milligrams of Prednisone. Later in the day it had spread to areas on my arm and my legs.  There were circles of rash that were almost clear in the middle and the itching got so bad that I jumped in my car and headed to ready to check into the hospital if necessary. By the time I got there most of the rash had gone away. I decided not to check into the emergency room because it was a three to four hour wait. Monday:  Went to my GP where I saw his PA who confirmed what the other doctor was doing, but didn't know what else to do for me. She did give me another Steroid shot. Tuesday: The rash became so severe on my hands and feet, that they itched to a point where I stopped scratching and begin ringing them as if I was washing them. I began taking Advil and Tylenol every three hours at very high dosage, because I was becoming worried that I might literally start ripping the skin off of my hands. Wednesday: While writhing in pain with the itching on my hands and feet, I thought to try using a couple of prescriptions that my dermatologist had given me for winter eczema, of Triamcinolone Acetonide and Topical solution of Fluocinonide on my hands and feet.  Lo and behold the itching subsided quite a bit, so much so that I could actually fall asleep.  August 2nd: Because the rash wasn't going away, I decided to go to my dermatologist. I had to meet with her PA who explained that she had seen this in other patients after their Covid shots.  She mentioned that it usually occurred 10 to 14 days past having the last shot. She increased my dosage of Prednisone to 60 milligrams a day and provided a script for a pill that was "10 times stronger than Benadryl and another one that would help me sleep; she also told me to increase my daily dosage of Zyrtec to 4 pills per day and gave me another prescription for the cream and topical solution that had helped stop the itching. I'd gone in on August 2nd because I had had the rash for so long, plus I had to travel for the conference on the 5th of August. I was afraid if I didn't get resolution soon, I would not be able to make it to that conference.  August 3rd: the rash went away but I was told to continue taking the prescribed medicines until I got back from the conference. I did scale back on the Prednisone after day six to just 20 milligrams a day. Made it to the conference on the  5th and left on the 10th and then on August 13th I tested positive for COVID-19. My GP said because of the steroids that I was taking, my immune system was probably shot so they gave me Paxlovid, which made me feel cured of COVID until day 7, when the virus rebounded in my body and lasted until the 27th. I'm convinced if I had had two more days of Paxlovid I would have been cured. In any event, it took me three more weeks to begin feeling somewhat normal.  My GP also told me not to consider any more Covid shots for at least a year.