Acute Urticaria is any form of hives that lasts less than six weeks. Hives is a skin reaction in which smooth, slightly elevated patches called wheals form on the skin. The lesions do not scar and usually resolve themselves after several hours.  However, sometimes they do return. Eruptions rarely last several days but they can go on for weeks. You can find acute urticaria pictures at Webmd.com, Skinsight.com, and Uptodate.com.

In urticaria, acute cases tend to stay idiopathic, which means the cause is never found. However, hives are usually attributed to an overactive immune system.  Your doctor will try to help you identify the acute urticaria causes. If what triggered the reaction is unknown, the patient is told to try and avoid potential allergens such certain medications and certain foods. If the hives are reoccurring, it is advisable to try and narrow down what is triggering the hives by making lists of what you come in contact with from day to day.

Acute Urticaria Treatment

Antihistamines are the primary agents used to treat urticaria. They come in two different classes: the older, first generation antihistamines and second-generation antihistamines. The older class tend to have more side effects, such as drowsiness but they are very effective. The second-generation antihistamines are non-sedating and have very few adverse effects (Emedicine.medscape.com, 2011).

In more severe case of acute urticaria, or in cases where antihistamines fail, corticosteroids may be used. These drugs stabilize the mast cell membranes, inhibiting further histamines from being release. They also reduce inflammation.  Long-term use of corticosteroids may cause adverse effects, but this isn’t usually a problem with acute urticaria. Antihistamines usually do the trick. The rash will usually disappear within 24-48 hours (Goodtoknow.co.uk, 2011).

Usually hives in children are triggered by food allergies. Other common triggers are skin contact with plants, stings, chemicals, cosmetics, or latex. Viral infections, such as the flu, can trigger rashes in some people. Treatment of acute urticaria in children is treated in pretty much the same fashion.

In additions to medical treatment, many people find alternative treatment to use at home because the itching and burning sensations of acute urticaria are normally hard to handle. It is important to know not to take aspirin as it is known to make hives worse. It can also cause a condition called Reye’s syndrome. Many people take a cool bath or shower to take care of the itch. Baths in cornstarch and baking soda can also be helpful. Aloe Vera gel is also known to be effective in giving immediate relief to symptoms and healing the skin.