What Are Hives?

What Are Hives?

Hives, or urticaria, are itchy red bumps that often feel like your body is under attack. Approximately 20% of people will have an episode of hives at some point in their life.   There are many causes but all result from the release of a chemical in your skin called histamine.  The presence of free histamine in the skin causes welt like marks (hives) that are intensely itchy.  Sometimes there are specific triggers and other times, hives appear randomly leaving you covered with itchy red marks.  These attacks leave patients feeling helpless, itchy and desperate to find a cause and solution. 

What can you do if you have hives?  The first step is to try to identify the cause and learn what your triggers are.  Gramercy Allergy and Asthma  is here to help! Gramercy Allergy and Asthma  is a referral center for difficult to treat hives in NYC.  We’ve see all types of causes of hives and can help you get them under control.

What Are The Types of Hives?

1) Acute Hives

• Last for less than 6 weeks in duration
  
• Can be caused by allergic reactions like foods, food additives, medications, sunlight, bug bites, medications, infections or other medical problems like thyroid disease
  
• Look like welts, redness and flushing in the skin.  Are often associated with burning, itching and heat.

2) Chronic Hives

•  Are similar to acute hives, but last for more than 6 weeks in duration
  
•  Occur daily to several times per week
  
•  There's often no identifiable trigger of the hive and they occur randomly over the entire body.
  
•  For some, hives are triggered by infection, thyroid disease, inflammation in the body,                exercise, sunlight, auto-immune disease, cold temperatures, vibration and other non-specific triggers like food preservatives and dye.

What should you do if you have hives? 

• See your allergist.  They will help you to identify the cause, and establish treatment for you.
  
• You should expect them to take a detailed history of potential causes, possibly test you for triggers, and check your blood for other potential causes.
  
• There are medications that can help stop hives including antihistamines, leukotriene blockers and for some medications like omalizumab, anti-bodies to the IgE trigger of hives.  

Want Gramercy Allergy's help in treating your hives?  Gramercy Allergy is a referral center for difficult to treat hives and we are here to help.

Want more information on hives?  http://acaai.org/allergies/types/skin-allergies/hives-urticaria

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