First aid for urticaria in children: first aid

The body's reaction to a certain external or internal irritant in the form of a rash, which is similar to nettle burns, is called urticaria. She may seem harmless. But the symptoms that accompany it, and the reasons that may be hidden behind these manifestations, are far from funny.

Urticaria, a serious condition, and the patient may need emergency care

Symptoms that may accompany the rash

Depending on the form and intensity, in addition to the rash, urticaria is accompanied by the following symptoms:

• very severe itching in the areas of the rash,
• rapidly growing rash lesions,
• swelling of tissues and mucous membranes, nausea, vomiting, headaches,
• difficulty breathing, bronchospasm, low blood pressure,
• dizziness, loss of consciousness, coma, increased body temperature,
• cyanosis of the nasolabial triangle and nails,
• swelling of certain parts of the body and oral mucous membranes.

Typically, a very strong reaction to contact with an allergen occurs only when the body has been stabilized with this allergen for a long time. This often happens because at a certain moment, when the first alarm bells were ringing, no one went to the hospital.

Differential diagnosis

In differential diagnosis, it is first necessary to take into account the speed of appearance and disappearance of rashes. This clinical picture is typical for acute urticaria.

The patient’s rash itself also resembles contact dermatitis. However, with contact dermatitis, the rashes are papular-vesicular and appear with prolonged exposure to the provoking factor. Elements of the rash form gradually and are localized at the site of direct contact with the provoking agent. Contact dermatitis rashes regress after eliminating the influence of the provoking factor.

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The photo shows contact dermatitis caused by a metal plaque on a belt.

In this patient, the rashes were only vesicular, not associated with exposure to an external agent, and appeared acutely. This allows you to exclude contact dermatitis and confirm the diagnosis of acute urticaria.

What to do if hives appear

The first thing you can do is think about what the body reacted with. It is important to remember that any rash on the body is a sign of increased toxins in the body. The pancreas could not cope with them and thus signals that something is happening in the body.

You should consult a doctor at the first sign of hives. It is not always caused by an allergic reaction; sometimes the problems are more serious. The doctor should prescribe tests that will show what the true cause of the rash is. What could be the reasons:

• allergies, not just food ones,
• contaminated air,
• autoimmune processes in the body,
• tumors
• worms,
• hormonal changes in adolescents, pregnant women,
• warm, cold,
• pathological disorders of the systems or structure of internal organs,
• infectious diseases, infection with HIV, syphilis, etc.

There could be a lot of reasons. And just looking at this list of reasons, you should be alarmed when hives appear, especially in a child.

You need to think about the consequences that urticaria can entail: urticaria pigmentosa in children can affect internal organs. If such a lesion occurs without infiltration, it results in death.

The consequences of urticaria are angioedema and anaphylactic shock.

Hives may be a consequence of an allergy to worms

It is important to know the essence of the problem

Urticaria is an acute allergic reaction, the external manifestations of which can be observed in the form of rashes. They can appear on any part of the body: face, torso, upper and lower limbs, surface of the soles and palms. There are times when the symptoms of a disease require prompt action. Providing assistance in the event of allergic reactions is especially important, since the rapidity of the process does not leave time for long thoughts and search for a solution to the problem.

Urticaria occurs in two ways: chronic and acute. Chronic urticaria is caused by serious disorders of autoimmune processes, chronic diseases of the digestive tract, as well as the endocrine system. Its manifestations are usually expressed by a constant skin rash, as well as a number of other symptoms.

Acute urticaria has a rapid development rate, sometimes taking several hours. In some cases, symptoms develop somewhat more slowly, over several days. This form may be accompanied by symptoms characteristic of other allergic reactions: rhinitis, suffocation.

First aid

If you happen to witness an attack of anaphylaxis or angioedema, you should know what to do in this case. The picture is not pleasant. However, if you provide the right help in time, you can save a person’s life. Let's first consider angioedema, what it is and what its symptoms look like.

• It can be of an allergic or non-allergic nature (hereditary pathology).
• An already sensitized body, receiving a dose of an allergen, no matter how, begins to actively release mediators that dilate the veins, thereby increasing their permeability and causing swelling.
• As a non-allergic disease progresses, provoking factors may include disorders of the liver, thyroid gland, gastrointestinal tract, anemia, autoimmune and helminth infections.
• There are a number of attacks in which the provoking factors simply cannot be determined. They are called idiopathic edema.

When to sound the alarm? Everyone should know the symptoms of edema. It begins to appear unexpectedly, the development is rapid. Literally a couple of minutes, or less often several hours, for severe swelling to develop in different parts of the face. Accompanied by swelling of the lips, eyelids, scrotum, mucous membranes (tongue, palate, larynx), gastrointestinal tract, and genitourinary area. The man seems to be inflated. On palpation, the tumors do not give any sensation. Patients complain of a feeling of skin tension. Swelling of the larynx can lead to asphyxia - breathing is difficult, the tongue turns blue.

Now let's look at anaphylactic shock. An allergic reaction with rapid development of symptoms. Provocateurs can be drugs, animals, food, plants. This disease is quite complex. Occurs in three stages. As a result, when reacting with an irritant, the body releases a certain amount of specific antibodies. They provoke the release of factors that cause inflammation. All this disrupts the usual rhythm of blood flow and plasma coagulability decreases. This is fraught with the development of acute heart failure or cardiac arrest.

What does it look like? First, the patient complains of general weakness. The man looks lethargic. There is dizziness, nausea, a rash on the dermis and mucous membranes, reminiscent of burns from a nettle leaf. A person may feel anxiety, suffocation, numbness of the hands and face, and deterioration of auditory and visual reactions.

Loss of consciousness, blood pressure decreases, the skin turns pale, lips and limbs turn blue, which means heart failure. Urinary incontinence may occur. The process of getting out of this state can last several days. Dizziness, weakness, and tachycardia still persist. There are three options for the course of the disease.

• The immediate course almost always leads to heart failure. In 90% it is fatal.
• Lingering. This type of anaphylaxis occurs when the body reacts to long-acting drugs.
• Abortive. This condition resolves very quickly. The outcome is very favorable.
• Recurrent. Repeats itself constantly. This occurs when the patient cannot control the allergen entering the body.

Dizziness and weakness, the main symptoms of an attack of urticaria

First aid for urticaria must be provided. If you notice any of these symptoms, call an ambulance immediately. There is no time to waste until the ambulance arrives. The patient must be placed in a horizontal position. His legs should be slightly elevated to stabilize his blood pressure. Open all the windows in the room to give the person as much fresh air as possible. Turn your head to the side so that he does not choke on vomit. If all this is a consequence of an insect bite, it is necessary to remove the poison (pull out the sting). Apply a tight bandage above the bitten area to prevent further spread of the allergen. Apply an ice pack.

You need to feel the pulse. If it cannot be palpated, begin resuscitation actions. Perform indirect cardiac massage. Perform artificial respiration.

Why does an attack occur?

The reasons for the development of urticaria are completely varied; they can be caused by both external and internal factors.:

1. Foreign proteins in food: nuts, fruits, mushrooms, red meat, eggs, chocolate, seafood, dyes, stabilizers, emulsifiers. The list of food allergens is constantly being updated and is huge.

2. Cosmetics, household chemicals.

3. Medicines: NSAIDs, antibiotics (penicillins), synthetic vitamins.

4. Infectious agents: bacteria, fungi, viruses.

5. Pollen and plant sap,

6. Wool, skin particles and secretions of pets.

7. Insect bites: mosquitoes, fleas, ticks, bumblebees, bees, wasps, hornets, etc.

8. Latex.

9. Change in ambient temperature, and a reaction can develop to both cold and heat.

10. Physical impact on tissue: vibration, compression.

11. Severe psycho-emotional and physical overload.

12. Helminthic infestations,

13. Chronic internal diseases: diabetes mellitus, thyroid dysfunction, gastroenterological diseases.

The reasons that push the immune system to an inadequate response to a stimulus are called triggers in immunology. To prevent the occurrence of unwanted reactions, it is recommended to avoid any contact with them.

Often, urticaria develops from an unknown irritant, which greatly complicates its treatment and the prognosis for relapse.

In addition, over time, completely new urticaria triggers are added. For example, around the world there are known cases of the appearance of characteristic symptoms from the influence of electromagnetic radiation on the body.

Thus, people complain of urticaria when using a microwave, mobile communications, and various electrical appliances. Unofficially, this disorder is called electricity allergy, but the relationship between cause and pathology is under careful study.

If your child has anaphylaxis or laryngeal edema, what to do?

Adults have a much greater chance of a successful outcome. An adult will quickly understand that he needs to calm down when he feels that he is having trouble breathing. But in addition to all the symptoms, the child begins to have a panic attack when it is difficult for him to breathe. The principle of action is the same as with an adult, but you cannot leave the child alone for a second.

• Call an ambulance first.
• While the ambulance arrives, place the child in a horizontal position. Raise his legs.
• Feel the pulse.
• Turn your head to the side.
• Try to remove mucus that makes breathing difficult.
• If the pulse disappears, perform resuscitation measures.

At the first symptoms of an attack of urticaria, you should call an ambulance

Emergency care, what medications are needed

Basically, when such terrible symptoms are observed, all medications are given in injections. This way they relieve symptoms faster, dispersing through the capillaries along with the blood flow. A list of medications and their use will be described below - you can find useful information for yourself.

• Adrenaline 0.5% 1 cube intramuscularly. If the patient has medicine with him during an attack, you can inject it yourself. Adrenaline has a vasoconstrictor effect, which reduces their permeability. Restores the functioning of the heart muscle. If there is no effect after the injection, then give another dose ten minutes later.
• Prednisolone. Steroid based drug. In these cases, you simply cannot do without such drugs. Give intramuscularly from 90 to 120 ml every four hours. Has an anti-shock effect and blocks the spread of the allergen.
• Next comes diphenhydramine 1% 2 cubes. Intramuscularly every four to six hours. An antihistamine that blocks the release of the main allergen.

After all mandatory procedures, diet therapy is prescribed. A series of tests must be done if the reasons for such a reaction of the body are not known. Toxin-removing drugs and enterosorbents are prescribed. It is necessary to empty the stomach, especially if a reaction occurred to any of the drugs. Patients are often given an enema upon admission.

Diet and its principle: an elimination diet is prescribed. Its essence is that the patient refuses food for a while. Or completely eliminated all allergens. Then food is gradually introduced into the diet, one by one, like complementary foods for babies.

It is necessary for the patient to monitor the body’s reaction to a particular product. All products, their method of preparation, quantity are entered in a special food diary. The body's reaction is also noted. A strict diet involves a period of fasting from 3 to 5 days. Typically, such a diet is prescribed only to adults and only in a hospital setting under the supervision of doctors. It is necessary that the patient drinks at least 2 liters of water per day. Cleansing enemas may be prescribed.

Diphenhydramine, an antihistamine that blocks allergens

Nursing care for urticaria

Creams and ointments are applied only to clean skin, and only to affected areas, without covering healthy areas. All ointments are applied in a very thin layer and slowly rubbed into the skin with massaging movements. Hyposensitizing therapy involves the administration of calcium gluconate intravenously or intramuscularly. If there is no improvement, and the patient’s condition is constantly worsening, then medications based on hormones and corticosteroids are needed. These are hormones secreted by the human adrenal glands.

To apply ointments, the skin must be clean. Therefore, proper bathing is an important process. If you have hives, you can swim in water with a temperature of not 37 degrees; hot or cold water can provoke a new reaction in the body. The gel or soap should be odorless and marked hypoallergenic. Use only a soft washcloth, preferably not rubbing at all. You should also wipe your skin with gentle, gentle movements so as not to damage it. An adequate nursing approach to caring for a patient with urticaria is the key to a quick recovery.

Dietary nutrition helps greatly to alleviate suffering; its basis is that the food that the patient receives is monotonous and does not contain allergens. What to exclude:

• citruses,
• seafood,
• red vegetables and fruits,
• sweets, including honey,
• nuts,
• smokedness, saltiness.

The best option is to keep a food diary, especially if the body reacts strongly to food irritants, and at the same time, the stomach should be treated. Emergency care for urticaria, algorithm:

• prednisolone 60-90 mg intramuscularly or intravenously,
• lasix 40-80 mg intravenously in a bolus in 10-20 ml of saline solution,
• adrenaline for lowering blood pressure, 1 cube intramuscularly, repeat after ten minutes if there is no effect,
• kontrikal 30,000 units intravenously in 300 ml of saline solution,
• salbutamol, one, maximum two inhalations,
• aminocaproic acid 5% 200 ml intravenously, after 100 ml every four hours.

It is recommended to exclude red foods

History of the disease

He became acutely ill after eating walnuts.
The rash appeared within 10 minutes and lasted for four hours. In the morning, the rash reappeared, and therefore the patient consulted a dermatologist at his place of residence. The patient lives in satisfactory sanitary and living conditions. There is no hereditary or allergic history. Denies blood transfusions and surgeries. At the age of 6 years he suffered from chickenpox. Denies concomitant diseases.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ytcopyrightru

The medical history of urticaria contains an allergic history. For this disease it is the most important. It is imperative to check with the patient whether there have been any allergy attacks in the past.

What else you need to know about helping with hives

The sooner you see a doctor, the lower the risk of developing complications such as angioedema or anaphylaxis. If Quincke's edema is a hereditary disease, this is one thing, but in other cases the person himself can do everything to avoid such consequences. This is especially important in childhood. The body's sibilization takes years. Until the age of three, it is usually impossible to even make an accurate diagnosis and do allergy tests.

An important step in helping with urticaria is further treatment. All this will continue until the real cause is stopped. The most difficult to treat are urticaria caused by stress and autoimmune diseases. When a person’s nervous system is unstable, then, sometimes, he does not even notice when he has become nervous, and thereby provokes new attacks.

Useful tips

After reading the article, you can find out what to do if a person has an allergic reaction such as hives. However, in order not to feverishly remember the entire list of necessary measures, it is better to know how to prevent unpleasant symptoms:

• Warm water should be used for daily washing and bathing. Detergents should be as mild as possible. These can be gels and foams.
• In clothing you should give preference to natural fabrics.
• Stick to a diet.
• Avoid stress; if you are nervous, drink motherwort tincture to calm you down.
• Try not to be in stuffy rooms, as well as outside in hot weather, avoid sudden temperature changes.
• If an allergy appears suddenly, then you should definitely remember everything that could provoke it in order to quickly identify the allergens;
• It is not recommended to be in places where there is a large accumulation of tobacco smoke;
• A woman who is pregnant, as well as a mother who is breastfeeding, should carefully monitor what she eats in order to avoid the appearance of hives in the baby;
• You should consult a doctor if the symptoms become more intense and the rash does not go away for more than a day;
• You should call a doctor immediately if a rash appears in the mouth, a rapid pulse is detected, or severe weakness appears.

When such a situation arises, the main thing is not to panic. Timely adoption of the necessary measures will quickly relieve unpleasant symptoms and make it possible to hospitalize a person without a serious threat to his health.

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Prevention of angioedema and anaphylaxis

It is necessary to take some precautions so that the body's reaction next time is not so violent.

• If the cause is an allergen, it should be eliminated and all possible contacts with it should be limited.
• Those with Quincke's edema, a hereditary disease, should take medications such as ACE inhibitors and antagonists with great caution. If a reaction occurs to drugs in this group, they should be replaced with analogues with a different composition. If possible, try to avoid surgery or injury.
• For prophylaxis, aminocaproic acid and tranexamic acid are used.
• If surgery is unavoidable, short-term prophylaxis is necessary. Preparations for prevention, frozen C1 plasma, inhibitors.
• It is advisable to avoid contact with an allergen such as tobacco smoke.
• Carefully monitor the appearance of symptoms of an allergic reaction and stop them at an early stage.
• Antibiotics of the penicillin group should be excluded.

Tobacco smoke can worsen the condition of a patient with Quincke's edema