Urticaria (hives) & pregnancy

[mrspotter]

I am 12 weeks pregnant and for the last couple of days have had hives (cold urticaria I think it is called). I recognise it because the rash and feeling is exactly as it was when I was started taking the contraceptive pill twelve years ago. I stopped taking the pill once I'd realised it was this that was causing the hives all over my body. Now I am concerned that my pregnancy hives is caused by one of the natural hormones oestrogen or progesterone as the levels of these increase during pregnancy I have been told. I think these hormones are also in the contraceptive pill.

Does anyone have any experience of this? I am concerned it will get worse as the hormone levels increase. Currently it is only on my hands but when I developed it before it spread all over my body particularly my thighs but also my face and chest and my hands and feet were swollen and numb.

Any help or advice would be appreciated

[BhumikaMD]

Hi,

A proepr clinical examination would be required before anything can be said with certainty. It would be best to consult your physician or allergy specialsit about your symptoms.

Do not worry about it spreading and worsening right now. Just think about getting a physician opinion and then starting the appropriate treatment at the earliest.

Let us know what the doctor advises and also keep us posted on how you are doing.

Applying calamine lotion on the lesions should help to soothe them.

Let us know if you have any doubts.

Regards.

[TamaraD]

I too am pregnant with hives.  I have had chronic hives way before I even got pregnant.  They have been dormant for almost 6 years until now.  I am so miserable.  The only thing I can take is zyrtec and benadryl which don't offer much relief.  I am only 5 weeks and I am miserable and on the verge of losing my mind.  The chances of me having hives for the remainder of my pregnancy is high.  I try my very best to deal with the discomfort by using gentle soaps, taking cool baths with oatmeal, and using a lot of hydrocortisone creams.  Good luck!  Always remember that there is someone else out there going through it too.  You're not the only one!  

Tamara

[BhumikaMD]

Hi mrspotter,

How are you doing? Have you been to the doctor and got yourself examined?

Do keep us posted on how you are doing and if there is any exacerberation/ relief in your symptoms.

Best regards.

[shenette]

hello...its been a bit of relief to read all your comments here.im in my 28 weeks of pregnancy & having this itchy patchy rashes in my thighs now made u my mind i have hives too...its too itchy,sometimes its so unbearable.i applied caladryl on it & my doctor said its okay but sometimes i feel so desperate just by looking at it...i tried starch bath also & it eases itchiness a bit bt no other solutions really help.Now for fast few days,it started to dry but more itchy at night but still i continue to apply the cream.is it normal for it to dry? pls advise.i worried it might affect my baby. worried mother to be

[BhumikaMD]

Hi,

Some itching and skin lesions are known to occur in pregnancy. Do you have a past history of allergic reactions?

In all such cases, it is advisable to let your OBG know about your symptoms and also let her have a look at the lesions. The further plan of management can then be decided - about whether an allergy specialist needs to be consulted and whether the relevant investigations that need to be done. The treatment can then be decided after a confirmed diagnosis.

It can only be said after a look at the lesions whether the drying process is normal or not. Also, talk to your doctor about whether it is infective or not and if it could affect your baby or not.

Let us know if you have any more doubts and also let us know what your doctor advises.

Keep us posted about how you are doing.

Hope this helps.

Good luck.

[shenette]

i have past allergic reactions but only on certain foods & maybe bec of milk also  bec i dont drink milk b4 but now i have to drink for my baby & my mom said when she was pregnant with me before,she has allergies also.i look into internet abt hives & the images is the same that i have.i spoke to my doctor abt this & she said to continue applying the caladryl lotion as i told her i have doubts taking oral medication as im afraid it might affect my baby.right now as it is drying i can notice that before it was really defined like swollen now it started to settle down as it is drying.i have my monthly check up tomorrow i will show my doctor & tell her again abt this.thank you i will keep you posted.

[BhumikaMD]

Hi,

The fact that you have had allergies before and that your mom had them too when she was pregnant is significant. It would be best if you dont forget to tell your doctor about this on your visit.

Keep us posted on your health and let us know if you have any other queries.

Regards.

[shenette]

hello..

i went to my OBG today & told her abt my complains,she checked & she prescribe me Virlix just for itchiness as she said this is urticaria.I told her i am hesitant in taking oral medicine as im afraid it might affect my baby but she said it's okay.do u think its is safe?I know my doctor will not give me anything that could harm me & my baby but just being cusious abt it.

[BhumikaMD]

Hi,

An OBG specialist of all the doctors on board would take special care in prescribing medication which are safe during pregnancy and cause no untoward effects on the baby.

Virlix is cetrizine and you can take it for your symptoms. You should in addition, follow up with your doctor regularly and get all routine investigations done as and when required.

Let us know about how you are doing and if you have any other doubts.

Hope this helps.

Regards.

[shenette]

thank you for prompt reply.its good t& a relief to know that it is okay.My OBG told me to follow up with her anytime & told me to take only when itching is too much.Im going to take it but i will not apply my topical creams so as to know if it has effect on my itching.thank you so much.i will keep you posted.

[BhumikaMD]

Hi,

Glad the post was of help to you.

Let us know if you have any doubts and also keep us posted about how you are doing.

Best regards.

[mrspotter]

Hi

I don't have a history of allergy reactions only the contraceptive pill does this to me! I told my midwife and she said it made sense as the hormones (oestrogen or progesterone) are in the pill and are now at higher levels in my body. I have read about a condition called PUPPP (Pruritic urticarial papules and plaques of pregnancy) that is more common in the third trimester of pregnancy but not this early (I am now 16.5 weeks and have had since 11 weeks).

I would like to ask other women with this problem if they took the contraceptive pill before pregnancy as this was the only time that I had this problem previously?

Unfortunately from reading articles in medical journals I don't think there is much we can do but apply creams and lotions and staying warm and applying layers of clothes (it gets worse in the cold I find). I persoanlly don't want to take any allergy pills as they could harm the baby.

[BhumikaMD]

Hi,

Have you seen an OBG specialist as yet?

An OBG specialist of all the doctors on board would take special care in prescribing medication which are safe during pregnancy and cause no untoward effects on the baby.

You can take cetrizine for your symptoms. You should in addition, follow up with your doctor regularly and get all routine investigations done as and when required.

Let us know about how you are doing and if you have any other doubts.

Hope this helps.

Regards.

[settimia]

ok i am 9 weeks pregnant and never had an allerigc reaction to anything..And i am covered from head to toe in hives.. my hands are swollen and my feet.  i have ben in the hospitial for two days and they gave me the lowest dose of steriods as prescribed from my obg.  Theres really nothing they can do...They only thing i hope is i dont have this through my WHOLE prenancey

[BhumikaMD]

Hi,

How are you doing now? Hope you are now symptomatically better.

Have you been discharged from the hospital?

You should keep cetrizine at hand and apply calamine lotion at the sites of the lesions.

Do follow up with your OBG regularly

Let us know about any doubts that you have and if you need any other information.

Regards.

[tara968]

hello everyone,

sorry to put a downer on everything but i to suffered from PUPPS in my last pregnancy it started around 13weeks and continued up untill i gave birth,it got so bad that my doctors where willing to induce me a week early as i wasnt sleeping and was depressed and couldnt go out as the only way to soothe it was to lie in a cool bath (i lived in the bath day and night),it was hell but the good news is i felt instant relief as soon as i had given birth.Its hard but it waont last forever.

[babygirl1025]

I am 33 weeks pregnant. I tried Xyzal, Benadryl, Zyrtec and Claritin for hives...I was so miserable..... BUT Tagamet, 400 mg 4 times a day worked! I cannot believe it. I know it is for heartburn or something but it is a histamine blocker like the other medications but it is slightly different. I suffered in agony for 4 weeks. I am still a little itchy but once I take a Tagamet, I am fine again!! THANK GOD!! It saved my life!

[babygirl1025]

Tagamet is a Category B drug... so do not worry about the baby..... it is safe.. go to safefetus.com for any drug you want to check..

[Daniele78]

On the hives, I broke out (for the first time in my life) when I was 7 wks along.  They ended up treating me w/an IV of prednazone & then for a solid week w/prednazone & triple doses of Bendadryl.  It worked-they never came back.  I'm now 29 wks. w/my second & am covered in hives again.  Nothing relieved it before until the treatments (which my child turned out fine) so now I'm starting all over again.  They're miserable.  It was nice to see all of the postings.  The docs don't jump to the above treatments so maybe I'll try theTagamet.   Good luck.

[babygirl1025]

I was given a prescription for 400mg of Tagamet 4 times a day. Then I took 50 mg of Benadryl at night. Hope it helps.

[nu_mom2b]

Hi,
I'm 5 weeks and suffering terribly with hives.  Are the meds you mentioned ok even in the first trimester?

[babyboyontheway]

Hi,
After never having hives before in my life I was alarmed when I broke out in them at 4 weeks preg.  (hives everywhere but my face- the week before knowing I was preg. for sure).  I covered myself in 1/2% cortisone and took benedryl.  Now at 28 weeks I am dealing with these hives again.  Itch-hurt-Itch-swollen-red...horrible!  The only thing worse than having hives is having hives on tight, already itchy, stretched out skin!  
I spoke to a few doctors the first ob in my practice that saw the hives said probably came in contact with something in the environment- Probably not from the Glucose test I took the day before.  Spoke to another ob on the phone who said the yes, probably a reaction to the glucose drink itself- it is the only change in my diet that day.  Spoke to my first born's pediatrician- she felt in agreement with the other two docs that the reaction could be to anything including the glucose drink and there would be no harm to baby by taking benedryl- so when I have help with my daughter so that I can sleep that is what I take.  Benedryl helps a lot.  Once it wears off I am back to the drawing board.  I looked at safefetus.com and cannot find cetrizine.  Does it go by any other name?  Willing to try anything that won't hurt baby.

[babygirl1025]

Try my combo the dr. recommended of benadryl and Tagamet. The exact amount is in an earlier post on 10/6. Hives may also be from a hormonal shift that occurs at the end of the 2nd and beginning of 3rd trimester. My hives were horrible. Cetrizine is Zyrtec which did little to help me. I also tried Xyzal. Like I said, the only thing that worked was the benadryl and a prescription-strength Tagamet. Tagamet is for stomach problems but it is an H2 blocker which is a different type of histamine blocker than benadryl, that way you are attacking it in 2 ways.

[babyboyontheway]

Like some kind of miracle- the hives have passed.  By yesterday afternoon the hives died down.  It was a three day nightmare of rash and itchiness that I thought was never going to end.  I am so fearful that it will come back.  I really hope not though.  If it does I will go straight to your advice.  Thank you for your response.