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Giornale Italiano di Dermatologia e Venereologia 2005 June;140(3):271-88

Copyright © 2005 EDIZIONI MINERVA MEDICA

language: English, Italian

Urticaria

Surrenti T. ¹, Sterry W. ², Zuberbier T. ²

¹ Department of Dermatology University of L’Aquila, L’Aquila, Italy 2 Department of Dermatology University of Charité, Berlin, Germany

Urticaria is a very heterogeneous disease that has been classified in different subtypes by the increasing understanding of the mechanisms involved in its pathogenesis. However, a clear distinction of the subtypes is required to choose the correct measures in diagnosis and management and to value the available data in research. The different clinical types of urticaria can be grouped into: 1) spontaneous urticaria, which includes acute and chronic urticaria; 2) physical urticaria; 3) special types of urticaria including the contact urticaria; 4) diseases historically related to urticaria, like urticaria pigmentosa. Since the urticaria subtypes compromise strictly the quality of life, an effective treatment is therefore required in case the diagnostic procedures do not reveal a specific cause which can be treated itself. For symptomatic treatment, non-sedating H1-antihistamines represent the first choice in most subtypes of urticaria, however, double-blind controlled studies have shown that dosages required may exceed those recommended for other diseases, e.g. allergic rhinitis. Alternative treatments should be reserved to patients unresponsive to traditional therapy