1. Community
  2. Allergies
  3. Allergic Disorders

Immediate pressure allergy / urticaria

Posted , 3 users are following.

clzrn
clzrn

Description: I have a very strange case of pressure allergy. If any part of my body is slightly pressured, it starts to get red, painful and a very bad itch starts immediately.

Examples:

1. If I hold a heavy bag, my hands hurts and itch

2. When I seat on the toilet, my thighs itch like crazy

3. One time I had to hold my niece on my arms and it felt I was going to die in pain

4. Other times, even seating on a regular chair and leaning against a wall can trigger it

5. I could go on and on with the examples but I guess it's easy to understand.

Some more details:

1. The reaction starts 30 seconds after the pressure, it lasts for about 1 minute if I don't touch or itch it, in the worst case it took 5 minutes to go back to normal. If I itch, even slightly it will make it worse and it may take 30 minutes to 1 hour to my skin return to normal color and stop itching.

2. Most of the time it's just redness, pain and itchiness, very uncommonly I get hives (I remember one time only actually)

3. It doesn't matter what is the material that makes the pressure. Anything will trigger it.

4. I've seen many allergists and dermatologists who said this is a normal allergic reaction, but researching on google I find that 99% of the cases are for "Delayed Pressure Allergy/Urticaria" where the patient will start to feel symptoms after a few hours. I found an article on PubMed which a doctor says one patient had the same case I do, and he describes it as "distinct disorder". Link: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/1934562

5. Can't say how many tests I've done and the only allergy I have is "dust mites". Nothing makes it better or worse, weather, food, being inside, outside, etc. I've never noticed any difference.

6. I take Loratadine 10mg every day, which helps me a little. I can tolerate small pressures, and most of the days I can go through without having any reaction, but if the pressure is too hard, or if I carry something really heavy, then yeah, the medicine doesn't make any difference.

Help needed:

I don't want to take medicine for the rest of my life, doctors seem to be clueless of what to do and I really can't stand living with this anymore, it affects every possible aspect of my life, so any help from the community will be appreciated.

0 likes, 8 replies

8 Replies

  • angieB48
    angieB48 clzrn

    Posted

    I don’t have the same but a similar perplexing condition. I itch if there is any contact with my skin on my face- not pressure normally just mild contact. For example my hair brushing my face, a piece of dust, applying moisturiser etc. I itch almost constantly but can relate the itch each time to things ‘landing’ on my skin. As with you I’ve had all the blood/food allergy/patch testing and nothing. antihistamines don’t really touch it. Currently I’m on gabapentin (only started yesterday) to see if that calms it down whilst I wait for a second dermatology referral but I’m not hopeful. There isn’t a rash or inflammation visible. I’m exploring food elimination again even though my food allergy testing was negative because they were limited and tested on my arm not my face where I itch. It’s debilitating so if yours is as bad as it sounds I feel for you. 

    • clzrn
      clzrn angieB48

      Posted

      Thanks for your reply. I've done some diets in the past like gluten free, dairy free and I didn't notice any change as well. I'm willing to try more radical diets like paleo, keto or even water fast to see if these conditions come from food. 

  • Su2
    Su2 clzrn

    Posted

    Hi. Sorry for you, symptoms like this are scary. I get intense pain on very gentle touches/contact in patches around my body. My symptoms are neurological rather than allergies in this case. Have you seen a neurologist to see if nerve pain is part of it. I'm photosensitive too so get rashes when exposed to UV light. Hope you get answers soon. Best wishes

    • clzrn
      clzrn Su2

      Posted

      I will definitely see a neurologist, I have other conditions like throat ache and excessive mucus production that might also be related to that. Any other doctor can found the cause too.

      Thanks for replying :D

    • angieB48
      angieB48 Su2

      Posted

      In my case the GPs have insisted on dermatology first but I might ask for a neurology referral if the Gabapentin works as that would suggest my condition is nerve related.  Dealing with itching is bad enough- I really feel for you both with the constant pain you are having. I hope it gets sorted soon!
  • Su2
    Su2 clzrn

    Posted

    It can end with seeing a few specialists. I see a Rheumatologist regularly and he has got my chronic Psoriasis under control. Despite having a few severe skin conditions I've not seen a dermatologist. Sometimes it might not be there specialism but they hit the nail on the head. Skin is a large organ and what goes on externally can give clues about what's happening internally.

    • clzrn
      clzrn Su2

      Posted

      This is true Su2, I am sure I will be seeing a lot of specialists, the problem is that it takes 3 to 5 different doctors to find one that wants to understand the problem and is willing to do something out of their comfort zone. This takes a lot of time, money and mental health to cope with.
    • angieB48
      angieB48 clzrn

      Posted

      It does! I don’t get a named GP at my surgery and I’ve seen 7 different ones as a result. You have to start again each time and they’ve all had a different opinion but no solution. I paid to see a private dermatologist, and food allergist and skin patch testing but even the private dermatologist didn’t  really offer anything other than a skin biopsy at £450 which I couldn’t do. I feel like my GPs think I’m making it up as there’s nothing to see and that also makes them slow to do anything. It’s frustrating! And they don’t do more than one referral at once apparently so I have to see an NHS derm before any other specialist and the waiting time is 16 weeks. Day 2 of the gabapentin and unless I’m imagining it my skin reactions are reduced. This medication works best for neurological pain so it might be worth asking about it?

Back to top

Report or request deletion

Thanks for your help!

We want the community to be a useful resource for our users but it is important to remember that the community are not moderated or reviewed by doctors and so you should not rely on opinions or advice given by other users in respect of any healthcare matters. Always speak to your doctor before acting and in cases of emergency seek appropriate medical assistance immediately. Use of the community is subject to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy and steps will be taken to remove posts identified as being in breach of those terms.