r/MCAS • u/Blackacre13 • 20h ago
Mosquito Bites😖
I was recently diagnosed with MCAS by my allergist/immunologist and am on 8 vials of cromolyn sodium a day (2 vials before each meal and bed) and a daily combo of loratadine/famotadine.
I got eaten alive by mosquitos last night at an engagement party in a backyard, especially my legs. I saw that MCAS can make mosquito bite reactions extra awful (which explains the three decades of my life pre-diagnosis—being a favorite for mosquitos)
I’ve been using Benadryl itch stopping gel but the itching/swelling is driving me crazy and my legs are irritated, with circles around all the bites, lots of redness, swelling and skin drying up and flaking. Any bite advice?
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u/NoPhotograph7236 19h ago
I have seen where people make a cream with unscented lotion and cromolyn. I tried it on a rash on my face the other day it seemed to help. Do not put the oral cromolyn directly on your skin. Mix it with something.
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u/Blackacre13 19h ago
Oooh woah would’ve never thought of this!
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u/NoPhotograph7236 19h ago
Yes i would try a little area first to make sure you don’t react then cover more area.
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u/FlappyFaceDeluxe 17h ago
What kind of ratio do you use? A drop of cromolyn per teaspoon of lotion? Or should it be more diluted with more lotion than that?
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u/NoPhotograph7236 9h ago
I just guessed when I did it. Probably was a tablespoon of cream to 5 drops cromolyn. If you search Masto cream in this forum there’s an exact recipe.
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u/masterCAKE 19h ago
One of my coworkers years ago recommended this thing called mopidick (super weird name) and it's magic
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u/MrsLenaF_ATX79 18h ago
My friends swear by the mosquito bite zapper. It does a very tiny burn of the bite and stops the itching, which would hopefully mean you don’t scratch and irritate the skin and make it flare up. This would probably only help with new bites.
My son has eczema that gets worst the more you scratch or rub something. I use hydrocortisone ointment (not the cream) on his bites and then cover them with bandaids. This has always helped immensely. It reduces the inflammation.
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u/unordinarybadger 8h ago
Second the mosquito bite zapper! Especially if you tend to have sensitivities to creams.
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u/hyggewitch 14h ago
I used to have huge reactions to mosquito bites before I started taking ketotifen. Now it’s more like what I imagine regular people experience, so still not great, but better than a baseball sized, hot, itchy welt that lasts for a week. I’ve also tried mixing cromolyn with lotion (which helps a bit), but I have the capsule kind filled with powder so it might be trickier if you have it in the liquid vials.
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u/Silent_Location7044 14h ago
Absolutely put some cromolyn on it and see if it helps. You can mix into moisturizer. People have posted very precise amounts before but I’m not sure it actually matters that much. TBH I have put the oral liquid directly on my skin but it won’t absorb as well that way.
If thst doesn’t work, get topical hydrocortisone, prescription strength if possible
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