Medicaments as the possible cause of urticaria in children

Medicaments are reported as the most common cause of urticaria. The objective of this study was to determine, by retrospective analysis of 132 pediatric patients treated at the Pulmonology and Allergology ward of the Department of Pediatrics, Banja Luka, over a 5-year period, the scope to which medicaments act as the possible cause of urticaria. Results of the study showed that the disease manifested mostly in male children (59.8), mainly of pre-school and school age rather than <1 year age group. Acute urticaria predominated, and it was recorded in 91.7% of cases. A medicament as the possible etiologic factor of acute urticaria was found in 29.8% of cases. Regarding chronic urticaria, in most cases the cause of disease remained unknown (63.6%), whereas a medicament and infection as the possible causal factors were found in 9.1% of cases. Before the occurrence of urticaria, 37 (28%) children took some medicament. Usually, these were antibiotics (45.9%), antipyretics (35.1%), or a combination of antibiotics and antipyretics (16.2%). Penicillin V, G or ampicillin were the most frequently used antibiotics (88.2%), whereas acetylsalicylic acid was the most frequently used antipyretic (53.8%). In 28% of the children suffering from acute urticaria, apart from taking some medicament, clinically manifested infection was also recorded, mostly of the respiratory system, so it could not be stated for sure whether the medicament or infection was the etiologic factor for the occurrence of disease. In only two cases it could be stated for sure that a medicament was the cause of urticaria, one acute and chronic urticaria each