Hives (Urticaria) are red welts with a white spot of raised skin in their centre. They usually appear suddenly, can come and go, and are caused by an allergic reaction of some kind. Illness, food, medicines, or external irritants like pets, laundry detergent, or new clothes are some of the possible culprits. Usually, it isn’t possible to figure out what exactly caused a child to break out in hives unless the hives make repeated comebacks. Experts say hives are usually best treated with Benadryl or other antihistamines. If a child appears to have hives because of contact with some external allergen you can try giving her a bath or shower. Hives in and of themselves are usually harmless, and often subside on their own, or with help of some mild antihistamine. However, since they are an allergic reaction, experts say to watch for other allergic symptoms, if such symptoms appear you should immediately contact your health care provider.
Dr. Sears
“Hives”
"Hives are caused by an allergic reaction within the body. [...] They appear as red or white, raised welts on the skin. They can appear suddenly out of nowhere, and can spread rapidly. They are most common on the chest, tummy, and back, but can also be on the extremities, and rarely on the face. A very distinct characteristic of hives is that each welt will often come and go over a period of 10 to 15 minutes or as long as a few hours. You will see some welts on the tummy, and then look again an hour later and find them gone, only to see new ones on the back. The welts can be small or very large, round or irregularly shaped, single or clustered together and over-lapping. They usually itch, but not always." …read the full article
Dr. Greene
“Hives”
"Hives are a sign that the whole body is experiencing a hypersensitivity reaction. Hives occur when the body’s capillaries and tiny veins get leaky. Fluid escaping from some of these blood vessels becomes trapped in parts of the skin and lining membranes of the body, causing localized swelling. This leakiness can be caused by classic allergic reactions in which histamine triggers an inflammatory response. It can also be caused by a number of other regulatory systems in the body in response to different types of triggers. The most common allergic triggers are drugs, especially antibiotics; foods, especially fish, shellfish, nuts, peanuts, eggs, berries, and food additives; infections (which we’ll discuss below); insect bites or stings; inhalants such as animal danders, pollens, and molds; and contact allergens like plant substances, skin creams, cat scratches, moth scales, or animal saliva." …read the full article
Children’s Hospital Westmead
“Urticari (Hives)” (Kid-friendly explanation)
"Hives are grouped into acute and chronic according to how long it has been present. Acute hives lasts for hours, days or a few weeks. Acute hives can occur as a dramatic rash which may worry both parents and doctors. The rash starts suddenly, frequently involves a large part of the skin and sometimes there is also swelling of hands, feet, and around the eyes. Chronic hives lasts for 6-8 weeks or more. In chronic hives the lesions are often not as dramatic as acute hives, but recur for days at a time, or in some cases are persistent or are present on most days." …read the full article
Raising Children Network
“Hives”
"There is very little you can do except to try to ease the itching with calamine lotion. A spoonful of bicarbonate of soda added to a tepid bath may also help to ease the symptoms. Your doctor may suggest using an antihistamine until the hives resolve. In severe cases steroids may need to be given. Hives are not contagious." …read the full article
BabyCentre Australia
“Hives”
“If your child has respiratory symptoms, such as wheezing, coughing, shortness of breath, or a swelling face or throat, or passes out or has severe diarrhoea or vomiting, call 000 immediately. Accompanied by those symptoms, hives can be a sign of anaphylactic shock, a potentially fatal allergic reaction.” …read the full article
