Urticaria

Chronic urticaria creates a cycle of itchy, raised welts that resist the treatments that work for regular allergic reactions. These persistent hives can last months or years, and antihistamines often stop providing lasting relief. Bioinfusion Center offers advanced biologic therapies that target the immune dysfunction driving your chronic hive formation. Cindy Crosby, MSN, FNP, CCRN, CRNI, and the medical team provide this proven treatment to help you regain control over your symptoms. Call the Farmington Hills, Michigan, office today to learn about biologic therapy for chronic urticaria or book a consultation online.

What makes chronic urticaria different from regular hives?

Chronic urticaria means you develop hives for six weeks or longer without any identifiable trigger. Unlike the hives you might get from eating something you’re allergic to, these appear randomly and can persist for months or even years.

The welts often change location throughout the day. You might wake up with hives on your arms, then find them on your back by afternoon. They can burn, itch intensely, and sometimes cause deeper swelling around your eyes, lips, or throat.

Why don’t antihistamines always work for chronic urticaria?

The vast majority of chronic urticaria cases have no external cause that you can identify or avoid. Your immune system essentially malfunctions, releasing histamine and inflammatory chemicals without any real threat present.

Your mast cells — immune cells that usually release histamine during allergic reactions — become hyperactive and unstable, releasing inflammatory substances in response to minor stimuli like pressure, temperature changes, or stress. High-dose antihistamines help some people initially, but they often lose effectiveness over time.

When should you consider alternative therapy for chronic urticaria?

If you’ve tried multiple antihistamines, leukotriene inhibitors, and other conventional treatments without success, alternative therapies may be the solution. 

Consider advanced treatment if you experience:

• Chronic urticaria that disrupts your sleep
• Frequent emergency room visits due to severe hive outbreaks
• Hives that don’t respond to high-dose antihistamines
• Autoimmune urticaria, where antibodies attack your own mast cells

This autoimmune form creates a particularly stubborn condition that resists standard treatments and often requires more targeted intervention.

How can infusion therapy help severe chronic urticaria?

Bioinfusion Center offers several alternative therapies for treatment-resistant chronic urticaria, such as:

Rituximab infusion therapy 

This medication targets the B-cells that produce antibodies involved in some forms of chronic urticaria. It addresses the underlying immune dysfunction rather than just blocking histamine after it’s released. 

Solu-Medrol® (methylprednisolone) 

The team provides high-dose steroid infusions for severe flares when oral medications aren’t sufficient. These treatments can help break the cycle of severe inflammation during particularly challenging periods.

Call Bioinfusion Center today to discuss whether advanced infusion therapy could help control your treatment-resistant chronic urticaria and restore normalcy to your daily life.