Chronic Hives

Chronic urticaria is defined as hives that last three months or more.chronic hives are mostly caused by autoimmune phenomenon such as andtibodies against thyroid or skin structures . An example would be antibodies against double stranded DNA or rheumatoid factor which are seen  in Systemic Lupus Erythematosis or Rheumatoid Arthritis. In Most cases the patient may have positive antibodies without the disease. Sometimes if the lesions are painful it is worth getting a skin biopsy to rule out vasculitic urticaria. autoimmune hives are very intense in their symptoms and sometimes require multiple antihistamines to control the symptoms. arthur lubitz md