Exercise-induced urticaria and angioedema: reports of two cases

Two Japanese patients presented with histories of exercise-induced urticaria and facial angioedema, respectively. Each patient exercised by climbing steep stairs for 5 to 10 min at 22 degrees C. A 19-year-old female student with atopic dermatitis initially developed lesions of cholinergic urticaria, which became confluent on her face, trunk and extremities and were followed by discomfort of her throat. In a 34-year-old female patient, the exercise induced angioedema on the right eyelids preceded by sneezing and rhinorrhea. Plasma histamine levels were elevated in the first patient. No changes in serum levels of complement systems were observed after the exercise challenge in either patient.