What is Urticaria? Is it Curable?

Urticaria also known as Hives or nettle rash, where a patient experiences recurring itchy skin rash, which appears as red bumps on different parts of the body, often with itching.

- Dr. Tejaswi K.P.

This is a disease with unpredictable occurrence can interfere with patient's daily activities, sleep, and work or school performance. The patient will be frustrated mainly due to its sudden unpredictable occurrence. Being unable to find what causes it and the side effects (drowsiness, sleepiness, stomach upset etc.,) of routinely prescribed anti-allergic medicines.

Urticaria typically occurs as red, raised eruptions (bumps) with intense itching; affected part feels warm and sometimes causes burning. The eruptions vary in size and tend recur. They remain for a variable period of time ranging from few seconds to hours. In some patients it occurs as 1-2 eruptions, few patients suffer from urticaria throughout the body.

Types of Urticaria

1. Acute uritcaria: If hives or urticarial rashes remain for less than 6 weeks it is called acute urticaria. Usually it is triggered by some allergens such as certain food articles, medications, insect bites, cosmetics etc