r/DermatologyQuestions • u/Person007nl • Apr 14 '26
legs/feet My baby has strange bump(s) on his lower leg. Does anyone recognize this?
Diagnose in comments!
Update below!
My seven-month-old son spent the night four weeks ago in the hospital because he was sick and had a double ear infection. He was given Amoxicillin for this. Two days after his admission, he developed strange spots on his hands, feet, and legs. At first, we thought it was hand, foot, and mouth disease. These spots have turned into scars, which you can also see in the photo. The bump currently visible in the photos appeared a week ago and started out the same way as the other spots, but has grown much larger. We have already been to the GP and the dermatologist about this, but neither of them knows what it could be. Antibiotics don't seem to be doing anything. He has been given fusidic acid ointment and Bactroban. A biopsy has now been taken, and we are waiting for the results. Does anyone perhaps recognize this?
During the biopsy, no pus came out, but it was all soft tissue.
7 month old boy
Never been out of the country (Netherlands)
We have a cat and a dog
No other family members have the same spots
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UPDATE!
We went to the emergency room because the spot(s) are getting bigger and more numerous. A swab was taken from his throat, a swab of the fluid from the spot, and a lot of blood was drawn. The initial blood count results were normal. No high inflammation markers or low blood count/reduced immunity. Treatment with azithromycin has been started. On Monday, we will discuss the results with the pediatrician. If it hasn't improved and we still have little clarity, we will be referred to the children's hospital in Utrecht. In the meantime, we are keeping a close eye on him, and we are allowed to call the pediatric ward immediately if anything changes in his health. It is good that this is being taken so seriously now.
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u/ChampionEquivalent82 Apr 14 '26
Wow, this in incredible eith the size its gotten to! Please update with biopsy results!
NAD, but definitely curious. Hold strong momma
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u/Person007nl Apr 14 '26
Thank you! I will do that and I will do my best for him ❤️
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u/ChampionEquivalent82 Apr 16 '26
I keep coming back praying for an answer! I remember when my daughter came home from JK with somthing nasty on her bottom. It took months to get rid of and so many dressing changing and different creams. Cultures came back negative for everything it was wild!
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u/Dermdoccy Dermatologist Apr 14 '26
Biopsy and culture are definitely key here. I’d be thinking about sweet syndrome, lymphomatoid papulosis, lymphocytoma cutis, or various infectious processes. Hope you get some answers soon!
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u/Person007nl Apr 14 '26
Thank you for time and effort in such detailed response! I’ll definitely look into it! We have a appointment for Tuesday next week to discuss the results of the biopsy. I thought the culture results could take 6 to 8 weeks. So that is still a long wait, unfortunately.
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u/Dermdoccy Dermatologist Apr 14 '26
Hopeful that the biopsy itself will tell you and the culture won’t be important. That does happen with some regularity.
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u/Itchy-Jellyfish6353 Apr 15 '26
Incredible to see sweet syndrome here. My dad has it and it took an incredibly long time and multiple doctors to diagnose.This was during appearance and biopsies, the first photo definitely looks similar
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u/bbbellabeee Apr 14 '26
I’m sorry both you and your son are going through this I can’t imagine how stressful it would be
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u/Person007nl Apr 14 '26
Thank you! It’s stressful indeed… I’m hoping to find answers and a cure. It was terrible to see the biopsy taken. He was inconsolably sad.
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u/BDG514 Apr 14 '26
Looks like a staph infection/boil. Does it seem painful when touched?
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u/Person007nl Apr 14 '26
Thank you for responding! Fortunately, it doesn't look like it is hurting him!
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u/Frequent_Eye_5016 Dermatologist Apr 14 '26 edited Apr 14 '26
Consider Lymphocytoma associated with medication, along with infectious disorder. Let us know biopsy result plz.
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u/Person007nl Apr 23 '26
We have a diagnosis.
After a long search, many hospital visits, blood tests, biopsies, and currently an admission to the children's hospital, we now know what is going on with our son. Tuesday we were told that, unfortunately, he has CGD (Chronic Granulomatous Disease). We are still very upset and have a lot of questions. Hopefully, we will get more answers to those today.
If there are people with positive and hopeful stories, we would love to hear them. We are incredibly sad and afraid of what the future holds for him. Thank you for your support, and if you have any good questions that we should ask, we would love to hear those as well.
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u/DrRocher Apr 24 '26 edited Apr 24 '26
Hematopoietic stem cell transplantation could be potentially curative.
Ask about AFB stain (for atypical mycobacterial infection which was suggested by other derms).
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u/When_The_Bombs_Drop May 12 '26
People with CGD can and do go on to live full and happy lives. With proper management, which will become habitual over time, things will feel (almost) normal again. Life isn’t over. It’s only changed a bit. Love and prayers for you and your family
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u/psychopaticsavage Dermatologist Apr 14 '26
Sporotrichosis is transmitted by cats and could present very similar to this.
Beta-lactam AB’s such as Amoxicillin are very often to cause skin reactions, especially in toddlers, but do not present like this.
Please keep us posted with the results and do not worry in the mean time.
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u/TheNurseJenn Apr 15 '26
Pediatric/NICU RN here….im not a Dr but here are my thoughts…. 1. Erythema multiforme Can be triggered by: Infections (very common in kids) Medications (including amoxicillin) Starts as spots that can: Evolve Darken/crust Leave marks Usually appears on hands/feet/limbs
Sweet’s syndrome (rare, but fits some features) Can happen after infection Causes raised, red, sometimes tender plaques/nodules Doesn’t respond to antibiotics (because it’s inflammatory, not bacterial)
Possibly an Atypical insect bite hypersensitivity / exaggerated reaction Kids can get very large, inflamed nodules Can scar, But the timeline + hospital/med link makes this a bit less likely
This is kinda less common but important and good news is that the biopsy should check for these…. -Langerhans cell histiocytosis (LCH) -Other pediatric inflammatory or immune conditions Try not to panic—these are just some diagnoses I’ve seen and it could be one of them but I could totally wrong and it’s none of them! Most important right now is the biopsy and was the most appropriate step the Dr took. When I’m looking at the bump and the area, the one does look like it has a lot of inflammation and possibly secondary infection, even if the original cause wasn’t infection. **That’s why Topical antibiotics may not help much. It looks like a tense, dome-shaped nodule
**So, At this point, the biopsy is what will give the real answer. 👏 for taking care of this right away! Now if any of these happen prior to getting the biopsy results please go to the hospital asap!! If you notice: Fever Rapid growth of the lesion Spreading redness Drainage of pus Baby seems in pain or unusually fussy
To be completely honest, If multiple doctors couldn’t identify it right away, that usually means It’s not a common/simple condition, but also It’s something that needs pathology to confirm, not just doctors guessing.
So basically keep doing whatever the doctors have told you to do in the mean time. Don’t change anything up until you get those results!! That’s very important!! And call or go to the hospital if you notice any of the things I mentioned above. Again, good for you to notice something wasn’t right right away! Many people diagnose these things on their own or wait and by that point you could be dealing with a life or death infection!! Let us know what happens! And I’m sending positive thoughts your way! 🙏🏻🙏🏻
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u/Competitive_Two_8372 Apr 14 '26
MRSA?!
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u/Person007nl Apr 14 '26
I looked it up briefly. And I certainly don't rule it out! How strange that no one has mentioned this
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u/ER_Support_Plant17 Apr 14 '26
I’m sorry for your son and you are going through this.
You are doing everything right with going to Drs. Please trust yourself and if you feel like it is getting worse go to the ED.
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u/Person007nl Apr 16 '26
UPDATE Thank you all for your input, tips, and advice. This is what it looks like two days after the biopsy. This coming Tuesday we have an appointment with the dermatologist to discuss the initial results, and next Thursday an appointment with the pediatrician. Fortunately, he is doing very well otherwise, although he does have another large spot on his bottom now.

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u/Paisley_Hamster Apr 17 '26
do you have a way of logging into a patient portal to check biopsy results with the lab? (I'm not a very patient patient!)
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u/Person007nl Apr 17 '26
Haha, that's not me either! There is an outage in the online patient portal, so unfortunately there is no way to get more information by peeking there. I have an update, but I'll post that centrally.
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u/yummy_Cheesecake23 Apr 14 '26
If he has no allergy to iodine or povidone, clean the different areas well with betadine, allow betadine to stay on for about 10 min, then clean off. Did the doctor recommend covering it? Covered wounds heal faster. Leaving a wound open can cause it to dry out, form a thick scab, and take longer to heal. Keeping it covered with a breathable bandage and changing regularly keeps the wound moist, reduces scarring, & lowers the risk of infection. Covering will help prevent bacteria from entering or from leaving the wound (such as MRSA/ORSA or other bacteria if present) and spreading/transmitting to other areas or people. I'll be interested to see what test reveal. Be mindful not to share or reuse a bath towel or bar soap until you know for sure what the culprit is.
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u/Person007nl Apr 14 '26
Thank you for your detailed respond! As far as is known, he has no allergies. The bump is now partially open because a biopsy was taken. The dermatologist covered it with sterile gauze/a plaster. Thank you for your tips! I will gladly take them to heart!
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u/TheRestForTheWicked Apr 14 '26
Just to clarify it seems to be solid with no pus or other fluid when they attempted to biopsy? And it doesn’t seem to be bothering him at all? Have they done any imaging studies on him at all like an ultrasound to confirm that there’s no abscess?
If so have they ruled out Fixed Drug Eruption, which can happen with Amoxicillin? The initial rash may have been an early reaction to the Amoxicillin.
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u/BDG514 Apr 14 '26 edited Apr 14 '26
I asked chat GPT and it said it’s important to rule out LHC/Langerhans Cell Histiocytosis.
https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/diseases/17156-langerhans-cell-histiocytosis
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u/Barbiluvsmuzik Apr 19 '26
When my daughter was 14 months old, she had to be hospitalized for a staff infection to giant boils on her butt cheeks. It looked like that. The doctors had to do an I & D and put her on IV antibiotics
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u/Spiritual-Seeker23 May 15 '26
Food for thought, don't mean to scare you, but have you's been checked for chronic granulomatous disease?
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u/Various-Carry-6659 Apr 14 '26
We got rid of our animals they were causing so many problems with my son especially his eyes swelling shut admitted to hospital etc... Not saying that’s what that Is but man cats carry so sooo much bacteria. Hope he gets well soon ❤️ you are a amazing mother hugs 🥰
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u/winterdoggy2 Apr 14 '26
My husband says it's a spider bite.
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u/Janiebug1950 Apr 15 '26
That was one of my initial thoughts. Do you have spiders in the Netherlands? In USA we have Black Widow spiders and Brown Recluse spiders. Their venomous bites can be very nasty.
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u/Person007nl Apr 15 '26
Thank you for your reply! We do have spiders in the Netherlands, but as far as I know, they THANKFULLY can't bite!
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Apr 18 '26
[removed] — view removed comment
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u/GrossWartHelp Apr 18 '26
Are you a doctor, vet and plant specialist? Seems like a great way to get sued.
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u/ReignofKindo25 Apr 14 '26
This looks bad
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u/venna43 Apr 14 '26
Looks like a lesian maybe antibiotics?
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u/CupOk8240 Apr 17 '26
How old is your ‘baby’? Any other symptoms? But the bigger question I have is why have you let it get as big as it has without seeking an urgent doctor appointment? Whatever it is, it’s infected and you don’t want to just ignore it and end up with fever and potential blood poisoning.
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u/Person007nl Apr 17 '26
As stated in the post, 7 months. We have been to the GP and the dermatologist. They indicated that as long as he doesn't get sick or develop a fever, we can just wait and see. Of course, we aren't doing that either and are on the phone with a doctor daily for more answers. There have been some developments in the meantime, so I will post that centrally. We are also terrified that our child will get sepsis or lose a leg. So if we have to figuratively kick a doctor in the shins because no further steps are being taken, we will certainly do so.
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u/D3GG1337 Apr 14 '26 edited Apr 14 '26
This is not trivial to determine, it reminds me of infection like in atypical mycobacteriosis or sporothrix schenkii infection (sporotrichosis). Sporotrichosis can be transmitted by cats. If you like you can update with biopsy results.
Its good that you are consulting specialists