Types of Urticaria

Cold urticaria (ur-tih-KAR-e-uh) is a skin reaction to cold that appears within minutes after cold exposure. Affected skin develops reddish, itchy welts (hives). People with cold urticaria experience widely different symptoms. Some have minor reactions to the cold, while others have severe reactions.

Contact urticaria is an immediate but transient localised swelling and redness that occurs on the skin after direct contact with an offending substance. Contact urticaria should be distinguished from allergic contact dermatitis where a dermatitis reaction develops hours to days after contact with the offending agent.

Pressure urticaria is characterised by the appearance of weals after pressure to the skin. Pressure urticaria may occur immediately after a pressure stimulus or more commonly, in delayed pressure urticaria, after a delay of 4–6 hours.

The ones that break out when you're sweaty from a workout, nervous, or just hot are called cholinergic urticaria (CU). They're caused by nerve fibers in your sweat glands. Your skin reacts to the heat and sweat when your body temperature goes up.

Physical urticaria are hives caused by direct physical stimulation of the skin -- for example, cold, heat, sunlight, vibration, pressure, sweating, and exercise. They usually happen right where the skin was affected and rarely appear anywhere else.

Solar urticaria (SU) is a rare condition in which exposure to ultraviolet or UV radiation, or sometimes even visible light, induces a case of urticaria or hives that can appear in both covered and uncovered areas of the skin.

Dermographism is among the most common type of urticaria. This skin condition is characterized by wealing of the skin in a rather exaggerated manner. Dermographism is also referred to as dermatographic urticaria, dermatographism and skin writing.

Take a bath with an anti-itch solution There are several products you can add to a bath to relieve itching. These include oatmeal (specifically marketed as colloidal oatmeal for bathing) or one or two handfuls of baking soda.

Use aloe vera on the affected areas, as well as the areas around the hives. Ice packs and cold compresses applied to the affected area can provide you with some relief from the itching and inflammation caused by hives.

Vibratory urticaria is a condition in which exposing the skin to vibration, repetitive stretching, or friction results in allergy symptoms such as hives (urticaria), swelling (angioedema), redness (erythema), and itching (pruritus) in the affected area.