About Urticaria

Symptoms

Urticaria causes itchy, raised wheals on the skin. The size of wheals and where they appear on the body can vary from person to person.

The symptoms of urticaria can vary between people, although the rash will typically last anywhere from a few minutes up to around 24 hours. CU is defined as daily itchy whealing of the skin for more than six weeks.¹

A graphic of a person outline with red patches of skin to signify raised welts/wheals. The text says “Raised welts/wheals that: are itchy, have a clearly defined border, turn white if pressed, can spread and join, vary in size and shape (small to large), and are often red in colour, but this may be less noticeable on darker skin tones.

3 photographs of a urticaria rash on different skin types

Complications

CU can result in sleep deprivation, anxiety, depression, lack of energy and social isolation and result in a significant deterioration in quality of life.¹

Comorbidities

Beyond experiencing the typical raised wheals that define urticaria, you may also experience other health conditions occurring alongside CU known as “co-morbidities”.

CU may be a symptom of an autoimmune or auto-inflammatory disease.

Autoimmune disorders like hypothyroidism, hyperthyroidism, celiac disease, Sjögren syndrome, systemic lupus erythematosus, rheumatoid arthritis, and type 1 diabetes mellitus are more commonly seen in patients with CU.¹

References

Chronic inducible urticaria. DermNet®. 2023. Available from: https://dermnetnz.org/topics/chronic-inducible-urticaria. Last accessed April 2025.