I Need to Know What Thsi Is!

I think you had better rule out allergies first. My upper lip used to swell if I ate something I was allergic to or sometimes from cosmetics - it's possible he's reacting to nuts or the bug spray, or even something you haven't thought of.

I would say no more nuts or peanuts until you can get him tested - you do not want to mess around with nut allergies. One time you can have a slight reaction, the next time you can have trouble breathing. It takes time for allergies to develop so he could have eaten something a few times and had no reaction until now.

Someone else mentioned that food allergies usually have an immediate reaction. This is true, but you can have a slight reaction immediately and later have a second reaction - in other words, something may have happened right away but it was slight enough that you didn't notice it. It's like it rebounds in the body.

How long after eating the ice cream did the itching start? My understanding is that if it is a food allergy, the reaction should be pretty immediate as opposed to hours after eating the offending items. That info could help you narrow down the cause. I'd also keep some kids Benadryl on hand - look for the generic equivalent as I think the recall is still in effect for the name brand. If he has another episode call his ped about allergy testing. If he has a severe reaction (swelling of the face, nasal passages, throat, difficulty breathing) give him Benadryl and get him to an ER. My son had 2 anaphylactic episodes almost 2 years ago. We never did figure out the cause. Best wishes to yo.

I'm allergic to many environmental and food things. This does sound like an allergic reaction. I'd also say that its quite likely a reaction to the bug spray tho it could be reaction to the pistachio. Nut allergies are common. The bug spray companies say to not expose yoursel, your children or animals to the spray. The idea is to quickly spray the rooms and leave for a period of time. Then to air the rooms out before staying in them.

If he is not having difficulty breathing then give him an antihistamine. If he's having even minor difficulty breathing take him to the ER. I suggest that you take him to see the pediatrician tomorrow if he's still itching. He can have higher than recommended doses of an antihistamine under a doctors supervision.

If you only have adult size anti-histamine tablets that are not time release you can cut the the tablet.. If it's liquid like a cough syrup give him the dose on the bottle. If you're not familiar with anti-histamines you can call the ER and talk with the advice nurse. Talking with her might be a good idea anyway.

Both I and my granddaughter have this sort of reaction every once in awhile. The allergist has told us to give her a child size dose of Benedryl and if that hasn't stopped the itching in 15-30 minutes to give her up to 2 more doses, one at a time. I've never had to give her more than a single adult sized dose.

I know from experience that scratching itchy fingers does cause them to swell, while scratching the body when it itches does not, tho it can break the skin and cause more itchiness. A cool bath with oatmeal in the water may help relieve the itchiness.

If he's asleep and not scratching and is breathing normally, I would not wake him up. If this is an allergic reaction and not a reaction to the bug spray he should feel much better tomorrow. But if he's not sleeping well then a trip to the ER may be in order. I'd call the advice nurse first.

My lips, eyes and especially my fingers/hands used to always swell with hives when I would eat tomatoes. He could be getting hives. For me, I had to be referred to an allergist. The allergist told me that the majority of allergies are acquired - you are not generally born with them. He also said it could be an allergy to anything from food, to detergent, to the metal in the can your drink came out of. So you will definitely want to speak to his pediatrician. I know it was very uncomfortable, sometimes even painful, when I would get bad flare ups. In the meantime, you might try children's benadryl if he gets another flare up.

Allergies are nothing to mess around with, especially nut allergies. What Sarah says is absolutely accurate. Additionally, a reaction can continue to occur for up to 48 hours. Benadryl does not stop a reaction, it just temporarily treats the symptoms of a mild reaction. Same as epinephrine (epi pen). My daughter is anaphylactic to peanuts and 3 different tree nuts. She had eaten things with nuts before her BIG reaction which included being life flighted due to the severity of her reaction. We now must carry an epi pen and benadryl with us at all times, as well as a steroid which is a blocker and actually stops the reaction from occurring. This still means we have to go to the hospital. My daughter is mildly allergic to other foods and presents with a variety of symptoms. I am glad we had a blood test done to be sure and we now practice Total Avoidance to anything she is allergic to, mild or severe. Go see your pediatrician and have them order a blood draw, it is the quickest and easiest way to put your mind totally at ease and be tested for multiple foods and environmentally allergies. Good Luck!

Updated

I was referring to what Sarah B said below. I just did not want to repeat myself and then after I posted I realized there was another Sarah who had posted.

Is he still itching all over? Is it keeping him awake? Does he have hives? Any other symptoms of allergy? How about very dry skin? bug bite? It could be anything, it could be allergy, bug bite, scabies, dry skin, poison ivy etc...If it doesn't go away I would have the pedi check him.

Sounds like an allergy. Keep track of what you feed him and see if it coinsides with the itching and swelling. Talk to his doc about it.

Yes, could be an allergic reaction.... maybe to the nuts in the ice cream.

Take him to the Doctor.

You might try and give him Benadryl or Claritin... since it is both antihistimines. And see if it helps... and if it does, then yes he probably had an allergic reaction to something... and yes, maybe to the insecticide.
Who knows.

I would take him to the Doctor or the ER... and not wait.
What if, he gets swollen over night... in other places? If his throat swells up... he will not be able to breathe, for example.
And he is itching all over....

I would, take him to the Doc or ER.... pronto.

Guessing, will not help him.
Only a Doctor can diagnose.
Beyond that, it is just guesswork, and meanwhile your child is suffering.

He might be allergic to the pistachio or the peanuts. He might also be allergic to something else in the icecream. When I was little, I bought some cupcakes with spinkles, and the same thing happened to me. Turns out that I was allergic to the sprinkles, or perhaps the dyes in the sprinkles. You might want to give him some children's Benedryl, and if it persists, take him to his pediatrician.

He could have a peanut allergy. My sister does and she can't be in the same room with peanuts or her skins starts itching OR her mouth starts to itch. IF she eats them, she'll be in the hospital. She can't go to restaurants where they throw peanuts on the ground. It could be an allergy to nuts.

I can't eat certain fruits because I get a fat lip or my mouth will itch. People think I;m nuts when I say my mouth itch and I get weird looks.

You should probably have him tested.

It could be any number of things causing the reaction. You say you sprayed for bugs recently (chemical allergies)...this could be the culprit. You also had ice cream (milk allergies), peanut butter and pistacio (nut allergies), your laundry detergent, metal allergies (perhaps he touched a door knob or window frame), latex allergies (anything from tape to bandaids) , it could be a combination of things, and so on.

I say go back to the pediatrician and have a full blood panel done for allergies. It's probably the only way to know for certain what he's really allergic to.

My first instinct is also allergies either to the spray or to the ice cream in regard to the itching of his hands.

If it happens again, I'd not be shy to call the pediatrician after hours and ask their advice. They'll either tell you 1 of 3 things:
1. Go to the ER
2. Give him Benadryl and call back if it doesn't improve then go to ER
3. Wait it out

As far as the issue with his lip, that's interesting. I don't know what could be going on there other than inflammation due to an infection. Just a guess though.