Dr. Hive: why is my son getting welts every evening

[PrincessMommy]

For the last week or more my 15yr old has been getting welts on his body- mostly legs, hips and arms, but last night he got one on his cheek.  They migrate each night to different parts of his body.  We use fragrance free detergent and haven't changed it at all, food is basically the same.  His routine is the same.  He's mostly a home-body.

 

I give him Benadryl and that doesn't always work.  He says sometimes the welts go away in 30 min. and sometimes they are spreading everywhere and it takes 4hrs for any relief.   They are always gone by morning and don't start coming back until late in the evening - around 8pm.

 

He's had this pop up from time to time in the past and then it just stops after a few days.  But, he leaves in a week for 2 week stay-away camp.  (he had it happen once at camp too). 

 

We're mystified.  What could be causing this?

 

 

[Insertcreativenamehere]

This same thing has been happening to my husband and we are just as mystified!

 

Sent from my MotoG3 using Tapatalk

[Sara in AZ]

I'm in the same boat. I've been to an allergist and I'm on a few things that are helping, but I have no clue what triggers it. It does seem to happen more when I am stressed and low on sleep. But it's still pretty random. I usually have a hive somewhere on my body at all times. Sometimes more, sometimes less. They are my little buddies wherever I go. 😜

 

I hope you can get to the bottom of it for your son!

[slackermom]

For a while my daughter had a reaction like that, possibly to air temperature changes. It was most severe when moving from outdoors to indoors in the summer.

 

Doctors tested her for allergies, but couldn't pinpoint anything specific. Her immune system is a bit out of whack.

[Random]

  A few thoughts:

 

Maybe the ingredients/processing recently changed for a product you've been using for a while?  Even if you are using all the same products, manufacturing can change at any time.

A summertime allergy?  An insect?  A plant?  Mold?

I get hives with temperature changes.  Especially if I exercise outside (my body gets warm) while it's cold. 

 

 

A few years ago, my son suddenly started breaking out in hives every night (he had multiple allergies that were well-managed).  After much investigating, I discovered his shampoo had macadamia nuts as an ingredient. 

[elegantlion]

My son had hives show up when he would exert effort. I hate to say exercise because that wasn't it as he's not an active person. He would get them mowing or if we were moving stuff around, like boxes and furniture. They were very itchy and were mostly focused on his torso and arms. He was very annoyed by it. He's not as bad now, come to think of it he mowed yesterday and it didn't happen. 

 

It only started when he was about 15 or 16. We were under tremendous stress at that time, not sure if that added into it. I did some research and opted to start him on Tagamet, as it does help with hives. He didn't want to take Benadryl except during a flare up. He still takes Tagamet when he has something stressful coming up, not sure if internal anxiety plays into that at all. 

[MercyA]

Sounds like it might be cholinergic urticaria (heat hives). He may need prescription antihistamines, but I'd try Zyrtec first. 

[sparrow]

My son has experienced this since he was an infant.  It took until he was about 13 to discover he has dermatographic urticaria. As an infant and toddler, it would typically happen when he was tired. As he got older, it could happen at any time, but we started noticing he'd get a welty hive on his back when doing school work at the dining room table. I was looking for an environmental reason causing it in that area of the house. After years of doctors being stumped and giving him Benadryl, I stumbled on an article about "skin writing". It changed everything! The welts at the dining room table? Caused by the pressure of the wooden chair on his back.....though it can spread to other parts of his body after the initial reaction.

He takes a Zyrtec tablet daily and now he no longer gets welts/hives. It may be something to look into.

[sparrow]

Sounds like it might be cholinergic urticaria (heat hives). He may need prescription antihistamines, but I'd try Zyrtec first. 

 

You posted as I was typing!

[PrincessMommy]

thank you everyone.  I have wondered if it was heat related, which is bad since there's no air conditioning in the cabins at camp.   I will get some Zyrtec today and see  if it helps at all.    At least it's a start.

[Guest]

Reading this thread reminded me that I used to get welts from heat...hmmm.  Interesting.  I don't anymore.  

[Guest]

Yeah, Zyrtec used prophylactically. DD had this. We called it the Traveling Mystery Rash.

[SparklyUnicorn]

One of mine has mysterious welts and hives from time to time.  Usually it's not a big deal and goes away by the next day.  Then he won't have anything for awhile. Then once it was so bad I had to take him to a walk in clinic.  Benadryl doesn't always quite cut it either (Zyrtec worked better and it lasted longer).  Nobody has ever figured it out.

 

 

[MercyA]

Reading this thread reminded me that I used to get welts from heat...hmmm.  Interesting.  I don't anymore.  

 

A tendency for cholinergic urticaria usually lasts from several months to several years. Average duration is reportedly about seven years. Some people have it on and off all their life and others only have it for a brief period before it permanently disappears. 

[MercyA]

Whoops, double post. 

 

Edited July 9, 2016 by MercyA

[gardenmom5]

sounds like hives.  benadryl isn't the first rx/otc to be rec'd.   I was shocked to learn *stress* can cause hives.  doing to much, etc.

 

dd had them before her wedding.  she was also doing internships and writing papers prior to graduation.  I don't remember which antihistamine was rec'd by her dr, but it wasn't benadryl.  she was strongly urged to take it easy and rest. she had to take a few days off from internships.

[elegantlion]

Here's a page on what to do for hives. Tagamet is listed as H-2 antagonist. ds didn't want to take anything that would make him too drowsy, for him Zyrtec is worse than Benadryl. 

[Terabith]

Have you ruled out the possibility that he is a superhero fighting crime at night?

[zoobie]

Hives often get worse at night. They also get worse in the heat or after a hot shower or bath. My DS has gotten them randomly a few times, and they take several weeks to clear up completely. Once was an allergic reaction to amoxicillin, but the others were likely post-viral per the allergist. Zyrtec works better than Benadryl, but it made my DS a hot mess when he was a little guy.

 

The hives can be a symptom of mycoplasmic pneumonia. If he's feeling run-down, it might be worth a ped visit. Two friends this year had daughters with it. They thought they just had colds until the hives appeared.