[Clinical and laboratory studies of cholinergic urticaria]

The clinical and laboratory study of 80 patients (75 males, 5 females) with cholinergic urticaria (CHU), treated from 1971 to 1996 is presented. The mean age at CHU occurrence was 22.3 years (10-50). The disease lasted at the time of examination from 3 months to 14 years, on an average 2 years and 11 months. Among 30 studied patients, the disease ceased after 1-3 in 5 patients, and it lasted from 3 to 24 years, on an average 9 years, in the remaining 25 patients. Exercise-induced anaphylaxis occurred in 8 patients and simultaneously cold urticaria occurred in 7 patients. The increase of histamine level in blood, following the exercise and/or heat test was found in 12 examined patients. The higher increase was noticed after the exercise, than after the heat test, which was well correlated with the severity of clinical features and the duration of skin manifestations. Repeated heat and/or cold test, performed at the same day, showed the weaker or no reaction at all. The role of the sweat, acetylcholine and histamine in CHU occurrence was discussed.