Reality television star Lala Kent recently shared a harrowing health experience with listeners of her iHeartRadio podcast, Give Them Lala, revealing a severe allergic reaction following a vacation in Hawaii. The incident, which initially presented as intensely itchy, “oozing” boils, prompted a battery of tests to rule out more common infections like staph, chickenpox and monkeypox, as Kent detailed on Wednesday, January 14. Kent’s experience comes amidst similar health concerns voiced by Real Housewives alum Bethenny Frankel,who recently shared her own experience with a vacation-related infection.
Key Takeaways
- On Wednesday, January 14, Lala Kent discussed a “vicious” allergic reaction she experienced during a previous vacation in Hawaii on an episode of her iHeartRadio podcast, Lala Kent: Give Them Lala.
- Kent said biopsies ruled out staph infection, chickenpox, monkeypox, or bacterial infection.
- The bumps, which were “oozing,” were determined to be the result of a rare allergic reaction to insect bites.
Reality television personality Lala Kent revealed she suffered an unusual reaction to insect bites while on vacation in Hawaii, sharing details on her iHeartRadio show, Lala Kent: Give Them Lala, on Wednesday, January 14.
The 35-year-old Kent spoke with her mother, Lisa Burningham, about the incident, following a recent post by Bethenny Frankel on Instagram detailing a bacterial infection she contracted during a January 4th trip to St. Barts.
“Guys, oh my god, I have a story to tell you,” Kent began. “So, I woke up one morning and I was looking at my body and I noticed little bites starting on my chest and back.”
Kent described the resulting rash as “vicious.”
“It was so bizarre. I thought maybe I brought back sand fleas from Hawaii,” Kent explained, adding that the bites “got bigger and weirder” and became intensely itchy.
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“I’m gonna call them boils. Like, ridiculous boils. Yes, disgusting,” the Vanderpump Rules star continued, noting they were “aggressive.”
She described being visited by a medical professional in a “hazmat suit” who examined the boils and took samples for testing.
Testing ruled out bacterial infection, staph infection, chickenpox, and monkeypox. Concerned about potential scarring, Kent sought treatment from a dermatologist. “They put me on a steroid, two steroid creams, an antibiotic, and an oral steroid,” she said. “I was worried about scarring,” she explained.
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“The biopsy came back consistent with a very rare reaction to insect bites,” Kent said. “So, it wasn’t like a bacterial thing like Bethenny Frankel.”
On January 4, The Real Housewives alum, 55, shared a series of photos with her daughter, Bryn, from their vacation on Instagram, briefly mentioning she was “dealing with a bacterial infection” over the New Year.
She included a close-up photo of a rash on her face with the post.
Frankel did not disclose the cause of the infection, but explained in a subsequent video, “My whole face is covered in a rash.”
