What is Urticaria?

Redness forms on the skin. These can easily rise. They can be very small, as large as the heads of a pin, or larger, even the size of a palms. Sometimes the redness seems to flow into one another. You can appear from head to toe. Also in the genital area. Some of them itch really badly. Others burn like fire. In rare cases, neither is true.  

The redness is called wheals. Some people swellings appear. These can form on the hands, fingers, palms, but also on the feet or the soles of the feet. Sometimes the swelling is so severe that you can barely step on it or reach for something. Occasionally the joints can also swell. Some people get joint pain, feel sick, much like a cold or flu, have muscle pain, and just feel limp. Often before the urticaria appears, these symptoms can appear.  

It is particularly unpleasant when urticaria is accompanied by so-called angioedema. This can result in the eyes, lips and skin, swelling of the mucous membranes or surrounding tissue.

The unpleasant thing about urticaria is that you never know exactly when it will come and how long it will last. If you also have angioedema on your face, you don’t want to be seen by other people. You don’t like to leave your own home. You may also need to be admitted to the hospital if the urticaria or angioedema are particularly severe.

There are many different types of urticaria, which we describe in more detail on the following pages.

Doctors still often cannot find a cause for the urticaria. Even if that is unfortunately the case very often, our experience has shown that despite everything, you can do a lot for yourself.

How it looks and what exactly it should be, we will share with you in detail.