Chronic Autoimmune Illnesses Linked to Chronic Hives

While hives can be caused by an allergic reaction, for some patients the cause can’t be identified. This is called “chronic spontaneous urticaria.” Some of these chronic hives sufferers may actually haveautoimmune urticaria, or hives that are triggered by an autoimmune reaction to different antibodies in the body.

Researchers believe that up to40%的人患有慢性特发性荨麻疹also have an autoimmune disease. While researchers are still trying to connect the dots, it is believed that high levels of autoantibodies may be to blame. These are the harmful antibodies produced by the immune system that attack the body’s own functions. It’s also widely noted that females are more commonly affected than males.

Autoimmune thyroid disease is the mostcommonly reported autoimmune diseaselinked to chronic hives.Researchers have been studying这个链接了几十年。甲状腺疾病,又称as autoimmune thyroiditis, occurs when the body makes antibodies that attack your thyroid. Some patients with a history of chronic hives were found to havesignificantly higher levels of thyroid antibodiesas compared to a control group of people who didn’t have hives. Unfortunately, it is only recommended to do anything about these antibodies if there is accompanying thyroid hormone dysregulation. While there is an association between these thyroid antibodies and the presence of hives, it is not yet known if these antibodies are actually causing hives.

Autoimmune thyroiditis may cause hyperthyroidism or hypothyroidism. Chronic hivesmay be linked to either. Hyperthyroidism, or an overactive thyroid gland, can cause irritability, muscle weakness, sleep problems, a fast heartbeat, heat intolerance, diarrhea, hand tremor, and weight loss. Hypothyroidism is caused by an underactive thyroid, which can cause sensitivity to cold, as well as fatigue, constipation, depression, weight gain, hair loss, and dry skin.

Rheumatoid arthritis has been found to be the second most common autoimmune disease in patients with chronic hives.
Rheumatoid arthritisis when the body’s immune system mistakenly attacks the joints, causing the tissues that line the inside of joints to thicken. People with this inflammatory autoimmune disease can be prone to different skin conditions, including chronic hives. One study found thatfemale patients with chronic hives were more likely to be diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis.

Research has found thatrheumatoid factors, or proteins produced by your immune system that attack healthy tissues in your body, were significantly more common in those patients with chronic hives when compared to control groups. Symptoms of rheumatoid arthritis can include painful, swollen joints and nodes or hard lumps under the skin, and various types of skin rashes.

One large-scale study found thatceliac patients had a higher risk of developing chronic hives. When people with celiac disease eat gluten, a protein found in wheat, barley, and rye, their bodies’ immune system responds by attacking their small intestines. This genetic autoimmune disease requires those affected to avoid eating gluten to manage symptoms. Symptoms can include painful bloating, chronic diarrhea, constipation, vomiting, and fatigue.

According to one study, people with celiac disease were1.5 times more likely to develop hives. In some cases, people may even be diagnosed with hives first, before being diagnosed with celiac disease. Researchers found that about a third of the cases of chronic hives could be attributed to the underlying celiac disease. Celiac disease is alsomore common among women.

Type 1 diabetesis when the body doesn’t make insulin, which it needs to break down the carbohydrates you eat. Type 1 diabetes is caused by an autoimmune reaction that destroys the cells in the pancreas that make insulin, so the body is unable to move sugar (glucose) from the bloodstream into cells, to fuel the body with energy to function. It is known to cause a number of skin conditions, including very itchy skin, and has beenlinked to chronic hives.

As with other autoimmune diseases, people with type 1 diabetes may be at higher risk of developingmore than one autoimmune disease, such as celiac disease or thyroid disease, and also chronic hives. Cases have been reported where children first presented withchronic hivesand were later diagnosed with autoimmune thyroid disease and then type 1 diabetes. In another case, an adult who had a history of type 1 diabetes and Graves disease suddenlydeveloped chronic hives.

Sjögren’s syndromeis often identified by its two most common symptom: dry eyes and dry mouth. Some people may also have joint pain, swollen salivary glands, skin rashes or dry skin, vaginal dryness, persistent dry cough, and fatigue.

Studies have shown a link between lupus and chronic hives, and sometimeschronic hives may even be the first symptomof the disease.Lupusis an autoimmune disease that can affect different body systems, including joints, skin, kidneys, blood cells, brain, heart, and lungs. Its most distinctive symptom is a butterfly-shaped facial rash across both cheeks, and rashes elsewhere on the body. Like other autoimmune diseases, nine out of 10 patients are women.

Lupus is known to cause a number of skin problems, including hives, cutaneous vasculitis (hive-like lesions), photosensitivity, alopecia, and purpura (small red or purple discoloration caused by blood vessels leaking just under the skin). About10 percent of all people with lupuswill experience hives. Most individual hives will fade and disappear within hours, while new welts flare. Individual hives lasting more than 24 hours may be due to inflammation in the blood vessels that could be due to lupus.