Hi 👋
Does anyone else get red bumps on the backs of your knuckles and fingers, I assume it's an autoimmune thing ( I have had primary sjorgrens for 8 years), there quite painful sometimes especially if you knock the ones on your knuckles, have attached a photo, excuse my hands. Thank you in advance 😊 I also have raynauds
Perfectly lovely hands!!
The 'bumps' I get are somewhat different to that, less defined. Mine are Psoriasis, another autoimmune condition which has developed since I got Sjögren's, so I can't really help you Shoad. However we do get strange things with these autoimmune conditions.
Hopefully someone else will chime in with recognition of what you have!
Thank you for your comment Megansheart, yes I think your probably right we do have to put up with strange things, wishing you well x
Shoad,
I’m so happy I came across your post. I started getting the same painful red bumps on my fingers back in 2010 and no one knew what they were. In 2012 I was diagnosed with SLE and Sjögrens. The bumps are very intermittent and come and go as they please. I’ve gone years at times with out seeing this. Interestingly enough though I just went through a Lupus flare up. And while that got better with prednisone, the skögrens stuff is still bothering me. Dry eye, dry mouth, and now these bumps are back.
I know it sounds totally insane but no doctor seems to believe them when I tell Them that some of these symptoms rear their ugly head when I am a week out from starting my period and then ca down once I start. Clearly there is a hormonal factor associated with autoimmune disorders.... but hey what do I know... I’m just a critical care nurse 🤷🏻♀️.
Frustrating to say the least. Thank you for sharing
I get the same bumps and your right they come right before period or during for me . I’ve gotten them for years and have no clue what they are or caused from . Thanks for this response , gives me some direction !
Hi Shoad👋
I have Erythema Nodosum. It causes red swellings that are painful. They are autoimmune related. I have gotten them on my legs and feet age 18. Now I get them hands & forearms too. Maybe this info will help...hope so. Best wishes🦋
Hello Shoad.Truly grateful to see your post as I get similar on my hands and like you they can become painful and yes have Raynauds as well as SS and Fibromyalgia etc. My GP always says ummmm must SS related. Will be interested in your feedback and others.
My hands are badly affected with skin cancers but these spots stand out
Shoad, agree with hormonal links with autoimmune disorders as well as dietary links. There will probably be fluid under those bumps as in eczema.
Hi I just joined, because of your piture. I have RA. methotrexate subq inj. I have those bumps on my fleshy palm by thumb. Fingers and 3 toes. I'm going to take a break for a month FROM trexate as per my Rheumatologist. Are you on methotrexate?.
PEACE-OUT
Thank you
Hi there
I am on methotrexate now but I wasn’t at the time that picture was taken and my bumps have gone away now, I have raynauds quite badly too and I thought it may be connected to that but the cause has always been a mystery.
All the best to you
Since I replied to your initial post one year ago I have started to get red bumps (at this stage confined to hands) exactly like your picture however mine although painful when they first emerge become VERY itchy. They exude a clear serous fluid if I scratch too hard. Although these bumps look more solid than a blister, once they are touched they become itchy and then behave like a varicella pox or a herpes simplex blister.
Simply weird!
Very weird indeed hope they go away quickly x
Omg I have the same. The bump painful, itchy, on my fingers and fleshy part of palm and on my toes. the doctor said she had never seen that with methotrexate. I'm on a month break from trexall. We shall see.
You are not alone
PEACE-OUT
I get them on my head so sore xx
Hi! I have been getting these bumps on my hands (mostly knuckles or between my knuckles) for 9 years. They seem to happen when I get a flare or am especially fatigued. They have no relationship to medication or food or allergy that I can tell, but if I am especially active they will surface. Sometimes only every 6 months, sometimes more often if I start working or traveling.
I have gone undiagnosed for a long time. I have been on hormone therapy for estrogen for a few years and just got diagnosed with Sjögren’s Syndrome. Waiting on more tests.
No doctor ever knows what these bumps are!!!!!! They make me crazy! 😝
I have the same bumps on my fingers, hands and feet. They are extremely painful and then itch when they are healing and go away. I get them every May and usually again in November so just about every 6 month. It started in 2008, shortly after I had something called “valley fever” but looking back not sure if that is what I really had, it was definitely a lung issue that “triggered” asthma that I never knew I had at age 27 and then also fibromyalgia.
I was diagnosed at Age 4 with JRA. As an adult, I have many inflammation issues and now osteoporosis (not even 40 yet). I have never been diagnosed with sjorens, raynauds and lupus was negative.
Would really like to know what they are and what caused it. The sun makes it much worse, but on really bad days I can’t move my fingers at all.
Rhuematology wants me to have them biopsied next time they flare up. He asked me if I think they are brought on by heat. I was diagnosed with Erythromelalgia which causes my hands and feet to burn frequently. I sometimes think the blistering is an extreme version of this. Mine do not get flakey and itch much but they do hurt.
I also have since seen this online and wondered if they are popping up during allergy seasons even if they are not a direct contact dermatitis. mayoclinic.org/diseases-con...
Thought maybe that would be helpful to someone.
Interesting, will be interested to see what results of biopsy is. Thank you.
Thank you. Mine are definitely aligned with allergy season, however not sure it’s related.
I’m not sure how to post pictures, but towards the end (after steroid cream, lotion and almost a month) they do tend to “scab over”. No longer itchy, but still painful.
I do notice I get them more when washing my hands, using hand sanitizer and being in the sun.
I was told by a doctor once it was called “housewives disease” a form of eczema. He said it’s from washing you hands with soap containing antibacterial agents. Kinda makes some sense seeing that both times of the year I get them are also cold/flu and now Covid. He told me to carry my own soap and not to use hand sanitizer. The soap he told me to use was Ivory.
Thank you for your reply. Have a wonderful day.
Hello Shoad, just wondering if you have gotten any closer to a diagnosis of the red bumps on the back of your hands. I too get these bumps. They come and go. I have been tested for Rheumatoid Arthritis and Lupus as I get joint pain but all tests have come up negative. I do have an autoimmune disorder. I have Ulcerative Colitis but I can't seem to find any relationship between the two when searching the internet.
I have ulcerative colitis and gets these bumps as well. Primarily on my right hand. On my knuckles.
Hello SunnyBean
No sorry never got to the bottom of my red bumps and at the moment they have disappeared, I tend to get them more in the winter, I have quite bad Raynauds so wondered if it was linked to that, I too have UC or rather proctitus but am also on different meds now for my Sjögren’s syndrome so it could be that that’s made a difference. I find anything autoimmune can throw some unusual symptoms in the mix that can’t always be explained, which is frustrating. Sending my best wishes to you x
I get them on my scalp very painful maybe I should mention to doctor d Cruz next appointment.
Anyone else get them on scalp dx
I get those. I associate them with eczema which I believe to be related with SS and with eating high acid foods and/or hidden gluten. I also get more traditional eczema, mostly on my hands also from stress or cheating on my diet. They go away if/when I get strict with my diet. 15 years experience with this.
I have gotten these “bumps” on a few occasions. However, I seem to only get one, maybe two bumps at a time. My most recent bump appeared on the fleshy part of my palm whereas every other outbreak has appeared on a knuckle. Each has been itchy and has had some pain associated with it. Similar to being bitten by a fire ant I suppose. Has ANYONE ever received an answer as to what the cause is? What the name of these bumps may be? Is there treatment or do sufferers just “tough this out?” Do they get progressively worse or more frequent?
I’m about eight years into this Sjogrens diagnosis and have made some dietary changes and tweaked several medications over the years to arrive at my present “comfort zone” as it is... and “comfortable” is a relative term. I have more changes that certainly need to be made... and now have a 20 year old daughter about to undergo auto-immune testing, as she is now displaying some tel-tale symptoms as well.
Sorry I can’t help with the explanation of the bumps I’m afraid never been given an answer but may I ask about how you’ve tweaked your diet and the difference that’s made for you, interested to know, thanks in advance, ps sorry to hear that your daughter now facing tests not what we want for our children.
Yes, and on the feet - had them for ages. Another one of 'little' annoying things that all add up!
I have Sjogren's Syndrome and Fibromyalgia and have been experiencing these red painful bumps or blisters on my fingers and toes for several years. The occur in the winter and last a couple of weeks. They got so bad this past week, I made an appointment with a dermatologist. He said the red bumps or blisters are Chilblains (or Pernio). They happen to people with auto-immune diseases. Here's a description: Chilblains (CHILL-blayns) are the painful inflammation of small blood vessels in your skin that occur in response to repeated exposure to cold but not freezing air. Also known as pernio, chilblains can cause itching, red patches, swelling and blistering on your hands and feet. See mayoclinic.org/diseases-con... for more info. He prescribed a corticosteroid cream. I hope it works!
That’s very interesting and makes sense, I can thankfully say they haven’t reoccured for me for a while now, thanks for passing on your information. 😁
Yes, mine look just like those. I had mine biopsied and they are granuloma Annulare. I also have primary Sjögren's with Lupus overlap.
Hi all,
I have been getting these weird bumps for at least 15 years. They started as one here or there on the tops of my hands or fingers. Sometimes I will get them on the soft parts of my feet. I am not sure what Sjögren’s is, but saw the picture and FINALLY thought, maybe someone knew what these bumps are. Over the last couple months they have gotten worse. I am now getting them on my forearms, I have 5 on my left arm, and at the current moment have 5 on my right hand.
They are sometimes itchy and hurt if I accidentally scratch or bump them. They do not seem to be fluid filled, but they take a few weeks to go away and almost always leave a scar, even when not scratched. The seem to go from flesh colored to really red, then flatten out and leave a scar in place of the bump. I was once told that I have an overactive amount of the the strep virus (that is not contagious) on my skin, but that sounded weird to me.
I have scoured the internet to find pictures of something similar to what I have and this was the closest I have seen. I will be making an appointment to see my new doctor and hopefully he will know what it is or have a little more insight.
I was diagnosed with fibromyalgia about 6 years ago after a really bad fall when I was 8 months pregnant with my last child. I don't let the fibro hold me back from enjoying life no matter how much I hurt, I just keep moving. I am only 42 with 3 kids, 10, 7 and 6. I have had these weird bumps since before the fibromyalgia diagnosis. Anymore information that anyone stumbles upon would be amazing.
Thank you,
Misti
I have the same bumps on my fingers, hands and feet. They are extremely painful and then itch when they are healing and go away. I get them every May and usually again in November so just about every 6 month. It started in 2008, shortly after I had something called “valley fever” but looking back not sure if that is what I really had, it was definitely a lung issue that “triggered” asthma that I never knew I had at age 27 and then also fibromyalgia.
I was diagnosed at Age 4 with JRA. As an adult, I have many inflammation issues and now osteoporosis (not even 40 yet). I have never been diagnosed with sjorens, raynauds and lupus was negative.
Would really like to know what they are and what caused it. The sun makes it much worse, but on really bad days I can’t move my fingers at all.
Currently suffering from an outbreak and my Rhuemotologist and dermatologist didn’t seem to provide answer.
Hi Shoad! I also have these painful red bumps on my fingers that won't go away! Currently have 12 on one index finger. I have RA & Primary Sjogrens too! Rheumatologist didn't know what they are! Anyone give you any ideas yet ? I see you're on MTX now? Did you start with Plaquenil? I have been taking Plaquenil for 2.5 yrs now. At 1st things were much improved, but things aren't as good now. Not sure if adding mtx is the next step or not... thoughts?
Hi TexasGal no never found out what they are lots of suggestions especially from other people on here if you scroll back through the replies. I don’t get them now really the odd one on the knuckle now and then. I did start on plaquenil yes and was on it for 10 years before it started being less effective and then put on methotrexate aswell as plaquenil and much better now but I don’t have RA only Sjögrens so maybe that’s why it’s not working aswell for you after two years. There are lots of different drugs for RA they can try for you, methotrexate doesn’t suit all but hopefully your rheumatologist is good and will look after you and find something to help. Hope that helps a little, keep safe and well
Kind regards
Sacha 🦋
My husband gets those. He has Sjogrens which we believe is primary as well, the specialist (we got rid of)tried to push RA with secondary Sjogrens. Anyways, they have been less frequent with the keto diet. Infact he hasn’t had any for weeks after being on the keto diet and vit d3 for the last 6 months.
I have them too. No idea what it is. Started a few years ago.
Hello! I believe I may have an answer for you. I too develop these bumps about every two to three months. At least three but sometimes five or six will appear, always on my right pointer finger. (large and painful) It doesn't matter what the climate is or what I'm doing, although they seem to appear when I've been under stress, such as traveling. I have Sjogren's and Lupus and had one bout of vasculitis. After some research, I discovered a very under-reported type of Chilbain called Lupus Chilblain. Chilblains are often caused by the restriction of blood vessels due to exposure to a cold environment. However, people with autoimmune issues experience these bumps without cold exposure. Autoimmune diseases, especially Sjogrens and Lupus, can affect blood vessels and cause restricted blood flow in the extremities. Hopefully this link I've copied will appear and help answer questions.longdom.org/open-access/sym....
I'm so glad you posted this, I also have SLE and Sjogrens and have been noticing these red bumps on my fingers and toes occasionally. And someone else commented that it happens around their period, which is true for me as well. I had been googling whether lupus or sjogrens can cause these, and wasn't finding anything...my doctor hasn't really said much about it either, other than autoimmune disorders make you skin do a lot of weird things😖
I have seen a couple of different top Seattle Rheumatologists over the last few years. None of them have much to say about it. I feel the reason why is because there are less than 100 confirmed cases of "Lupus Chilblain". It's not on their radar. Obviously, there are many cases of it. My current Rheumatologist said "why does it matter to have a label assigned to it?" It's true that a label isn't going to do much, however dealing with so many issues, I like to know what it is I'm dealing with. Also, having an actual name for this may offer a treatment protocol. My finger hurts when I get a breakout and having something topical to ease discomfort would be awesome. Interestingly, they showed on my toes first but now only on my right hand pointer finger. It's definitely an autoimmune thing and one of the many weirdo issues to add to our list of odd things we get. 😊
I also read that lupus chilblains is rare and am very surprised by that because it seems very common based on how many people mention these symptoms on the internet. Frustrating that your doc doesn’t understand the need for a label. They obviously haven’t ever had a chronic illness.
I responded to Shoad (original contributor) and posted a picture. Does that look like what you have? Clobatesol does seem to be helping. I spot treat the bumps with clobatesol on a qtip then put Vaseline on, then cotton cloves before going to bed. I’m also using colloidal silver ointment during the day.
If you find out anything please let me know!
Yes, that is exactly what I have. Here's a picture of my recent breakout. 😊 I have a tube of clobatesol and will give it a try. Thank you for the suggestion.
It’s crazy. The hand in your picture could be mine, the bumps are so alike. I stopped with the clobatesol because it was making my hands sore (it can thin the skin and shouldn’t be used indefinitely). I started using the highest strength vitamin E oil and it seems to be helping. Did the clobatesol with for you? Have you ever had what seemed like swollen joints? I had a couple, one on each hand, but couldn’t tell if it was something unrelated.
Glad I found this thread! I don’t have Sjögrens that I know of but I have interstitial cystitis, another autoimmune disease, and starting to wonder about Reynauds. For the last few years I have been getting an occasional bump on a finger here and there every few months but 5 months ago I started getting a lot more and it hasn’t stopped. I finally saw a dermatologist about a month ago who said it is dyshidrotic eczema and put me on clobetasol ointment. Clobetasol can apparently thin the skin which I think is why it might be helping. However, it’s not so good for healthy skin around the affected area so must be used for short periods of time. I’m not convinced it’s eczema. The second dermatologist I saw said it didn’t look like typical dyshidrotic eczema and might be stemming from an autoimmune thing.
Do the bumps in my picture look like any of yours? They are red at first but eventually lose much of the redness and become almost callous like. They don’t hurt or itch unless I bump them and then it can be excruciating.
Hello, I had to scroll back through the posts as it was a long time ago now, I don’t get them anymore I take methotrexate and that has kept my symptoms under control and no red spots since, looking back it looks like there is no definitive answer only that autoimmune related, the bumps you have sound exactly like the ones I had, I think maybe a good idea to ask to see a rheumatologist and get some testing done for autoimmune diseases. Have you noticed any other symptoms like joint pain, dry mouth, dry eyes. Anyways hope that helps good luck and all the best 😁
Hi Shoad! I just wanted to say hello and thank you for the original post. If you ever go off methotrexate, you may have an issue with them again. I tried methotrexate and I was so sick with it. Glad to hear you're having success with it. Take care.
Hi Shoad. Glad the bumps have gone away for you. I don’t have dry mouth or eyes. I do have an autoimmune disease called interstitial cystitis, digestive issues that haven’t been figured out, and some joint pain. Yes, I’ve been thinking I should see a rheumatologist.
Did the bumps leave any scarring? It’s hard to imagine these bumps completely clearing up because they are so hard and thick.
They completely go away (no scars) but reoccur every few months. Definitely see a Rheumatologist. I have IC too. They very well may say it's no big deal.. and it's not really BUT it's annoying. They're painful when bumping them, like you said. You may have another underlying issue you're not aware of or it's on the horizon. Hang in there!
I have those too. Those are not related to the weather and I have not been diagnosed with any autoimmune disease. I get those 2-3 times a year. No idea what is causing those.
douloureux avant l'éruption par picotement puis démangeaison au stade de la photo, je n'arrive pas à savoir quand et pourquoi cela apparait, des mois sans rien avoir puis d'un coup cela peut apparaître sur les poignets ou sur le pouce ou comme sur la photo entre les doigts. j'avais soupsonné la charcuterie et le chocolat mais je pense me tromper. un alergologue m'a dit d'éliminer certain aliments pour avancer, super, payer 50€ pour entendre ça 😅
Hello just found this site today. I have cracks on my tongue and little blister type bumps that are quiet painful