Hives episodes can manifest in many different ways. Thus, an individual’s urticaria prognosis will depend on his or her circumstances. The hives prognosis may be affected by the length of the episodes and by the cause of the hives, among other factors.

Acute urticaria, which can last anything from a few hours to six weeks, can be triggered by viral and bacterial infections, foods, food preservatives and additives, insect bites and stings, and medications. Chronic urticaria, which can last from just over six weeks to many years long, may also be caused by a variety of factors. Among its triggers are physical stimuli like sunlight, heat, physical exertion, sweat, cold, pressure and water.

Most cases of chronic urticaria are idiopathic. This means that the people suffering from them and the medical professionals consulted are unable to determine what triggered them. The patients could unknowingly expose themselves to these factors every single day. For these people, being unable to identify the factor may result in an urticaria prognosis of lifelong discomfort.

For other patients with idiopathic chronic urticaria, either complete recovery or partial improvement is possible within one to five years. According to the March 2011 edition of The Journal of Family Practice, studies carried out in Netherlands, Brazil and Greece showed that full recovery would result for a third of such patients and partial improvement would result for another third. Those patients younger than 30 years in age with more severe hives or with physical hives tended to have the worst hives prognosis.

Some General Remarks about a Patient’s Possible Hives Prognosis.

While it is not possible to generate exact predictions for every stricken patient, the general urticaria prognosis is positive. Hives are usually uncomfortable but harmless. In a minority of situations, hives occur in tandem with a condition called angioedema in such a way as to potentially harm a patient. In these rare situations, unless the patient gets immediate medical assistance, the angioedema can cause suffocation and death.

In most cases, hives will eventually disappear quickly on their own, leaving no scars or discolored skin behind. Before then, one can take various medications to ease the discomfort associated with the symptoms. Many of the medications and home remedies for hives act to soothe the itching skin. Others, known as antihistamines, work by interrupting the process by which the mast cells in the patient’s skin produce histamine. Steroids are often used to treat severe cases of hives, but they have unfortunate side-effects with prolonged use.

Most cases of urticaria resolve in time, but in some cases urticaria complications ensue. Hives complications tend to result in severe cases where hives is compounded by the simultaneous occurrence of severe angioedema.

Online descriptions of urticaria tend to list the symptoms and complications of hives together in order of severity. Detailed descriptions of the wheals or welts characteristic to hives are first on the list, followed by itching skin and discomfort. Fortunately, most patients with hives recover completely. No scars or discolored skin remain to tell the tale of their discomfort. As for the itching and discomfort, these are usually mild and topical creams or soothing home remedies can be applied to the skin to minimize them. Loose-fitting cotton clothing also helps tremendously.

Unfortunately, not all cases of hives have a happy ending. In some cases, the symptoms are severe: the wheals associated with hives may cover much of the body. Rather than feeling just some itching and discomfort, the patient may have to endure a burning sensation on the affected patches of skin. Such cases of hives may be resistant to treatment by antihistamines. Instead of resolving with time, they may occur again and again in repetitive cycles that frustrate the poor patient. Some people have been known to live this way for decades with little relief.

Life-Threatening Urticaria Complications

There are yet other cases of hives where the progression of the condition results in swelling inside the mouth or the throat. These urticaria complications cause acute upper airway obstruction, the results of which can be agitation, confusion, cyanosis, breathing difficulties, wheezing and loss of consciousness. Such hives complications must be resolved with medical assistance, which may entail a tracheotomy or the insertion of an endotracheal tube. Failure to get the appropriate treatment in time can result in brain damage or even death.

Anaphylactic shock is one of the more alarming urticaria complications. It is a severe, full-body allergic reaction that is sometimes associated with hives and angioedema. The release of histamine causes the narrowing of the breathing tubes, which makes breathing difficult. Other symptoms of anaphylaxis include abdominal pain, anxiety, lightheadedness, palpitations, nausea, low blood pressure, cyanosis and angioedema in the throat. The angioedema might cause obstruction of the upper airway, leading to suffocation, while the drop in blood pressure can result in loss of consciousness or death. Because these hives complications are severe and can progress in a matter of minutes, emergency medical care is necessary.

Urticaria research has helped to demonstrate that autoimmune diseases, bacterial infections and viral infections have played a role in triggering some forms of hives. Research of this kind has made it clear that urticaria does not constitute a simple ailment: It can be a manifestation of dysfunction in the immune system, pushing it to respond to infection in an unusual manner or to attack the body’s own cells.

Research on some forms of hives has revealed an association between them and some autoimmune diseases. These autoimmune diseases include autoimmune thyroid disorders (like Hashimoto’s disease and Grave’s disease) and lupus. All of these autoimmune diseases have been shown to coincide with hives in a number of patients. In many cases, it has turned out that the coincidence of hives and autoimmune disease is statistically significant.

One study, involving a group of chronic hives patients and a healthy control group, showed that the patients with hives were more likely than the people in the control group to show positive results when tested for autoimmune thyroid disease. When these patients were treated for thyroid disease, their hives were eliminated. The results were shown to be statistically significant. Hence they provided some evidence for the claim that autoimmune disease played some role in triggering hives.

Urticaria Research Findings on Bacterial and Viral Infections

Hives research, highlighting the implication of bacterial infections in the development of hives has shown that, with the successful treatment of bacterial infections using antibiotics, associated hives cases have been completely resolved. Of course, not all cases of hives are triggered by bacterial infections. In fact, it is possible for one’s hives to coincide with an unrelated bacterial infection. So it is important to recognize that given research findings will apply in a specific set of circumstances, but not in others.

Among the bacterial infections that have been identified as hives triggers in the aforementioned research are a variety of dental, gastrointestinal and ear, nose and throat infections. These include Helicobacter pylori infections (which cause stomach ulcers) and yersiniosis. Tonsillitis, pharyngitis, otitis and sinusitis, which may be caused by bacteria like staphylococci and streptococci, are also included in this category.

Some urticaria research cases have linked the development of hives to viral infections. These have included cases of both acute and chronic hives, and the associated infections have typically affected the upper respiratory system, the ENT region and the digestive system. The infections in question have included the flu, adenoviruses and rhinoviruses. It is telling that, with the successful treatment of these viral infections, the associated hives attacks have been completely eliminated.

For those who are interested in learning more about urticaria, news reports can be instructive. On occasion, online news articles discuss incidents involving unusual manifestations of hives. News of this nature can be enlightening for a hives patient or even for a medical student, because it describes some of the symptoms of hives in a manner that is impossible to forget.

Urticaria News Article on Skin Writing Artist

One example that comes to mind is a brief piece describing a hives artist. This artist essentially uses her hives symptoms to produce breathtaking artwork. She is a woman with a form of hives called dermatographic urticaria or skin writing.

In this form of hives, the exertion of pressure on the skin results in the formation of a welt on the area of skin where the pressure was applied. Thus, if a dime is pressed onto the sensitive skin, a dime-shaped welt will appear on it shortly thereafter.  Likewise, if one uses a finger to trace the letter A onto the skin, then an A-shaped welt will subsequently appear on the skin. It is not unusual that an artist with dermatographic urticaria would use her skin as a canvas of sorts for calligraphic welts. Nor is it surprising that her story would make it into an urticaria news article.

The welts last only 30 or so minutes, but that is long enough to take pictures and immortalize the hives. News articles on this artist, together with pictures of her art would undoubtedly appeal to creative people everywhere.

Dermatographic urticaria is actually a very common form of hives. The sensitivity to pressure tends to be triggered by allergens, but can also be attributed to the diet. It often occurs in people in their teens, early twenties and middle age. The duration of the condition can be as short as a few months or as long as a few decades.

Hives News Article on Rapidly-Aging Woman

There are other curious manifestations of urticaria. News articles have focused a lot on the case of a 27-year old Vietnamese woman who seems to have aged prematurely. The diagnosis, finally announced by specialist doctors, is chronic autoimmune urticaria, likely complicated by the use of corticosteroids and traditional forms of medicine. For the woman, who has suffered from the condition from the age of 12, it is probably a relief to find out that she has a well-known condition- hives. News of the diagnosis will hopefully help to dispel the social stigma she has experienced.

The synonymous terms “urticaria syndrome” and “hives syndrome” are potentially confusing. It may not be immediately apparent to the layperson what they mean. The first step towards understanding the terms involves looking up the definition of the word “syndrome.”

A syndrome refers to a group of symptoms that occur simultaneously. It often suggests that one has a certain disease or is likely to develop that disease. However, a syndrome is not always related to a specific disease. Some syndromes can be indicative of a number of different diseases. Other syndromes have absolutely nothing to do with disease. Yet other syndromes have no identifiable physical cause.

Diseases, on the other hand, are abnormal conditions that involve the impairment of function in an organism, and have readily identifiable causes. Diseases may be inherited, or they may result from environmental poisoning, infection or dietary deficiency.

Various conditions in which hives manifest as prominent symptoms are referred to as urticaria syndromes. Some examples include the five cold urticaria syndromes: idiopathic cold urticaria, secondary forms of cold urticaria (for instance cryolubulinemia and cold hemolysis), delayed cold urticaria, localized cold urticaria and localized cold reflex urticaria.

Contact Urticaria Syndrome

Another example of a hives syndrome is contact urticaria syndrome or CUS, which was first given this name in 1975. The factors that trigger this syndrome include metals, preservatives, foods and plant and animal products. This condition can be difficult to diagnose when the patient also has hand eczema as they can both be triggered in similar contexts (for instance, the healthcare workplace, where latex gloves abound).

When one has CUS, the irritation usually shows up on the skin within a period of a few minutes to one hour after exposure to the triggering factor. Knowledge of this fact might help the patient figure out what the likely triggering factor is.

The symptoms of CUS are similar to the symptoms that one encounters with other urticaria syndromes. They include an itching or burning sensation as well as the reddish bumps known as wheals. A number of CUS patients are able to identify the triggering factor because of the limited amount of time that passes between their exposure to it and their development of the symptoms.

Familial Cold Urticaria Syndrome

Familial cold urticaria syndrome is yet another hives syndrome. It is an autosomal dominant condition. This means that it is genetically transmitted and the patient needs only one copy of the altered gene from one affected parent for the condition to manifest. The symptoms include joint pain, fever and a rash on the skin whenever one is exposed to cold temperatures. It is evident for much of the patient’s life, usually beginning in infancy and continuing henceforth.

Living with urticaria of the acute variety is, at most, a six week-long ordeal (but typically shorter). Living with hives of the chronic variety is another story.

Acute urticaria is often triggered by allergens or by viral infections. If the trigger is an allergen, it is possible for an allergy specialist to determine what it is by questioning the person with the symptoms and doing some tests. As for viral infections, it is often possible to recognize these by their associated symptoms.

When the trigger is identifiable, the patient can take steps to avoid or remove the trigger henceforth. Thus, the prospect of living with urticaria can be kept at bay. Sometimes, doing this is not even necessary: hives can resolve in a few hours or days, bringing an end to the itching, discomfort and wheals without any need for intervention.

Chronic hives are often idiopathic. This means that medical professionals are frequently unable to determine what the trigger of this form of hives is. Because they can last for years, the person living with hives of this form has to face the possibility that the symptoms will become a permanent part of his or her daily existence. The challenge for this patient is to figure out how to live a productive life, even with chronic hives.

The Impact of Medication on Those Living with Urticaria

Antihistamines are a popular treatment among sufferers of urticaria, especially now that non-sedating or low-sedating forms have been developed. Patients who use these antihistamines don’t have to worry about drowsiness. Thus, unlike hives patients who rely on soporific antihistamines, they can live their lives productively.

Medications that address the itching and wheals may make living with urticaria manageable. But that does not mean that they cure the condition. A person could easily spend decades suffering from hives and appearing to recover from them, only to succumb again. The oral corticosteroids that some patients take to treat the most severe forms of chronic hives help control the symptoms, but when taken for a long time they can weaken the immune system.

Some patients who use these corticosteroids are pleased with the results when they first use them. The hives clear up quickly, leaving no scars behind. However, a short while after the patient takes the last dose of the medication, the stubborn symptoms return. This means that the patient living with hives may have no choice but to continue taking potentially harmful medications indefinitely.

Urticaria testing is one of the important steps that specialists take in their efforts to diagnose and treat hives. When hives testing is successful, the trigger of the condition can be determined and the appropriate form of treatment started. This is more desirable than dealing with chronic idiopathic hives, for which a trigger is undeterminable.

When a patient first consults an allergist/ immunologist about ongoing hives, a number of steps follow. The specialist asks the patient questions about the condition, examines the patient and then requests that, for the duration of the urticaria, the patient should keep a diary of activities, foods and drinks taken and of medications, supplements and herbs used. The diary should also indicate when the hives appear, on which body parts they appear, and how long they last. Subsequently, depending on what the specialist surmises from the consultation, he or she will order urticaria testing for the patient.

Different Approaches to Urticaria Testing

Hives testing could include blood tests to help the doctor determine the levels of specific components of the blood. X-rays may also be ordered, as well as urine tests. The doctor may order allergy skin testing. In the case of suspected vasculitis, a skin biopsy is more typical. The doctor can also order special tests to rule out health conditions like hepatitis and thyroid disease, which have been known to trigger or exacerbate hives.

For suspected food allergies, the doctor may order one of two tests. One, the elimination diet, involves the patient avoiding the food that might be responsible for triggering the hives. If the symptoms go away, only to return when the patient eats that food again, then the trigger has been identified. The test can extend from 2 weeks to 2 months.

The second possible test is the oral food allergy challenge. In this test, the patient ingests a variety of foods while the doctor observes for reactions. This is a good way to diagnose food allergies, but it comes with a risk. If the patient develops an adverse allergic reaction, then symptoms like anaphylaxis could ensue. It is for this reason that the test is carried out under a doctor’s observation.

At any given moment, a doctor’s decisions about hives testing will depend on the circumstances surrounding the hives. A patient in anaphylactic shock will require immediate evaluation to determine the trigger. A patient with mild urticaria, on the other hand, can follow the slower route described in the previous paragraphs.

The urticaria (hives) skin condition is relatively common. For this reason, it is not difficult to find information about it on the internet.

Hives typically present as wheals: smooth, flat-topped, reddish bumps on the skin. They may be accompanied by itchiness, stinging, tingling or a burning sensation. Hives often stay in one location for a short while before vanishing and then ultimately appearing elsewhere. They do not usually leave scars behind.

In addition, they do not have the capacity to become life-threatening unless they are complicated by angioedema and result in anaphylaxis, a deadly medical condition. Hives and anaphylaxis make for a frightening experience. If the anaphylaxis is not addressed immediately, it can lead to severe injury or death.

The nature of hives varies according to the circumstances. To give an example, hives can be triggered by an autoimmune disease, in which case, they might be thought of as a symptom of this medical condition. Hives can, conversely, be thought of as constituting a distinct autoimmune condition. In this latter situation, hives are more than just a skin condition: hives are, rather, a disease that is characterized by the dysfunction of the immune system.

Hives can also be triggered by various bacterial, viral, fungal and parasitic infections. The hives condition of a patient suffering from one of these infections can typically be resolved with the infection’s successful treatment. These infections often affect the digestive system, the upper respiratory system, the dental area and the ENT area. Thus, a patient suffering from one of them experiences additional discomfort to the urticaria skin condition.

The Presentation and Treatment of the Urticaria Skin Condition

The hives skin condition can present in different ways. In some cases, the hives appear solely at the site of contact between the skin and the factor that triggers them. This form of hives is referred to as contact urticaria. When it develops in response to a latex glove, it is the patient’s hand that gets covered in wheals. When it is makeup that triggers the hives, it is the patient’s face that develops the localized hives.

Hives can also present as a generalized skin condition. Hives of this kind can appear anywhere on the body, especially on parts of the body that have not been exposed to the triggering factor. One might develop this form of hives in response to an allergen like ingested food.

Various medications can be taken to manage the symptoms of hives. They include topical creams for the itching skin, antihistamines to prevent the action of the skin’s mast cells, and steroids for the inflammation.

Hives can be triggered by various factors. These include allergens such as medical drugs, to which a patient’s body responds by breaking out in hives (urticaria). Side effects of various drugs, as listed on drug information websites, include allergic responses such as hives.

Examples of antibiotic drugs that have been known to trigger allergic hives in some patients are Amoxicillin, a penicillin antibiotic drug, and Minocycline, a tetracycline antibiotic drug. These drugs have the capacity to trigger more than just hives. Side effects that result from their use have included both hives and angioedema, which, in their most extreme form, can send patients into anaphylactic shock.

The symptoms associated with anaphylaxis include hives, itchiness, labored breathing, swelling of the face, lips and tongue, and a tight chest. Anaphylaxis is a life-threatening condition. Hence, when patients experience it, they should seek emergency medical care, which will entail the administration of epinephrine.

The above paragraph describes the most appropriate way to address these extreme Minocycline side effects. Hives can be treated afterwards by changing the antibiotic prescription and applying a topical cream to the wheals. Of course, the same applies when one is dealing with Amoxicillin side effects: Hives left over after the anaphylaxis has been addressed can be treated with topical cream or other hives remedies.

The Side Effects of Hives Medication

If there is anything to be learnt from the foregoing paragraphs, it is that the medications so often taken to provide relief from ill health can result in adverse side effects like urticaria. Side effects of this kind can range from mildly uncomfortable conditions to life-threatening ones.

In the same way that antibiotics like Minocycline and Amoxicillin can trigger hives, the corticosteroids taken to relieve the inflammation of hives can provoke their own set of side effects. The side effects of hives medication, and more specifically of corticosteroids, are serious: These medications suppress the immune system, thus increasing one’s vulnerability to infection.

Ultimately, all medication comes with side effects. Some people just happen to respond better than others. Hence, as long as medication is necessary for the treatment of a given condition, it is not possible to eliminate all side effects.

However, there are steps that one can take to reduce the damage or suffering brought on by medication: It is important to use medication only when necessary and as prescribed by one’s doctor. Any problems that develop along the way should be shared with the doctor immediately. He or she will be best placed to make changes to the dosage or to prescribe an alternative form of treatment.

Hives (urticaria) in adults are triggered by some of the same factors that trigger hives in children and teenagers. Among these triggers or causes of hives in adults are allergic reactions. Adults may have allergies to such substances as medication, food, preservatives and pet dander. In allergic responses to these triggers (either from ingesting or touching the allergens), these adults develop hives on their skin within any amount of time between a few minutes and a few hours.

Allergic hives typically present as acute hives. As long as one is able to remove the allergen from his or her environment, the hives symptoms ultimately resolve and do not recur. If one should fail to identify the substance, then it is possible to be exposed to it again and again, resulting in hives episodes without relief. This could easily happen with a substance like food coloring or a food preservative. Most people are unaware that they ingest these substances when they eat processed foods. Hence, they are not likely to know which foods contain them or that they are repeatedly exposing themselves to allergens.

Autoimmune disease is another cause of hives in adults. Various autoimmune disorders, including lupus and thyroid disease, are associated with outbreaks of chronic hives. Some studies on the connection between hives and thyroid disease have shown greater prevalence of thyroid autoantibodies among patients with hives. Upon treatment for thyroid disease, these patients’ hives have cleared. The studies, therefore, indicate a definite connection between autoimmune disease and the development of hives, even though the mechanisms behind such a connection remain largely mysterious.

Stress and Infection as Triggers of Hives in Adults

Stress is yet another common trigger of hives in adults. This should not come as a surprise, given the high levels of stress endured by adults at their places of work and in other aspects of life. Younger age groups do experience stress. However, children tend to be shielded from the extremes of stress by the adults in their lives.

When urticaria in adults is associated with stress, it tends to present as a chronic condition. If the stress is not addressed, then the urticaria endures. In addition, chronic stress weakens the immune system, increasing patients’ vulnerability to infection and to psoriasis, an autoimmune disease which manifests as a skin condition.

Various infections, including viral, bacterial, fungal and parasitic infections can also be considered reasons for hives in adults. These infections vary. They may include urinary tract infections, infections of the gastrointestinal tract, ENT infections, upper respiratory tract infections and infections of the dental area. When these infections are successfully treated, the associated hives vanish, indicating that there is a connection between infection and the prevalence of hives.