Cold Urticaria: Risk Factors And Prevention

Cold urticaria is a skin reaction that appears shortly after coming into contact with cold. When this allergy occurs, red, itchy blisters appear on the skin.

On the other hand, cold urticaria is more common in young adults. Cold is one of the top 5 causes of chronic urticaria. It is classified as a type of physical urticaria.

As we said, cold hives appear after exposure to cold, but it can also result from contact with a cold object, air, or a cold liquid.

Cold urticaria is also called cold allergy, as its skin symptoms appear 10-30 minutes after the affected area is exposed to this factor. In other cases, it may appear at the same time.

Cold urticaria – symptoms

Patients suffering from cold urticaria have very different symptoms. Some of the signs are:

• Hives : as the name suggests, this will be a telltale symptom. Red, itchy blisters appear temporarily on areas of the skin that are exposed to cold.
• As the skin heats up, the reaction worsens.
• Swelling of the hand when holding cold objects.
• Swelling of the lips when consuming cold food and drinks.

In other cases, the symptoms are not as mild. There may be fever, general malaise and local pain in the head, abdomen or joints. In addition, some patients have very severe symptoms in the oropharynx of the respiratory system, namely the mouth, glottis and trachea.

In case of prolonged exposure to cold, which can happen while bathing in cold water in the wild, the patient may even experience anaphylactic shock and suffocate. In such a situation, the air flow is interrupted due to the appearance of angioedema in the mouth and throat.

Reasons and risk factors

The exact causes of cold urticaria are currently unknown. In some cases, certain people seem to have very sensitive cells due to a hereditary trait, virus, or disease.

Usually, when a person suffers from this condition, the cold triggers the release of histamine and other substances involved in the reaction. They are all responsible for causing the symptoms described in the previous section.

On the other hand, there are a number of risk factors that favor the appearance of urticaria. Among them we can mention:

• Age: As we have seen, young adults are most at risk .
• Undiagnosed medical condition: There is also secondary acquired cold urticaria which can be caused by an undiagnosed health problem such as hepatitis.

• Heredity: Sometimes cold urticaria is hereditary.

How can this be prevented?

There are many steps you can take to prevent recurrent episodes of cold allergy. Among them, we especially recommend the following:

• Talk to your doctor about which antihistamine drug is most effective in your specific case. Depending on what your doctor prescribes you, follow the advice of your doctor.
• If you intend to expose yourself to the cold, protect yourself with appropriate clothing.
• If you are going to swim, check with your hand first for a skin reaction.
• If your doctor has prescribed an epinephrine auto-injector, carry it with you at all times to prevent serious reactions.
• Tell your doctor that you are allergic to cold if you are to have any surgery.

Cold urticaria – treatment

Cold urticaria is treated primarily with antihistamines. These are drugs that alleviate symptoms but do not prevent them.

However, these medications are not effective for all types of cold urticaria. Nevertheless, there are currently other, more specialized, pharmacological agents that can be used at the discretion of a dermatologist.

Another therapeutic measure is to direct the patient to increase his tolerance to cold. To do this, its exposure to low temperatures is gradually increased. This should always be done in a hospital and under medical supervision.

However, it should be remembered that the best treatment is to take preventive measures, avoiding exposure to cold.