<<Disclaimer: Verify this information before applying it to your situation.>> Date: Fri, 21 Feb 97 15:37:46 EST From: [log in to unmask] Hi Patti, I had a very severe case of hives like you describe from the time I was 16 to 26. The only drug that would keep them at bay was Atarax. Given the 50's mentality, and since Atarax was considered and still is also a tanquilizer, the problems was diagnosed phychogenic. They could find no possible cause for the problem. A couple things to consider: Thyroid disease is 15% higher in Celiac patients as oppposed to control groups. At the Allergy/Immune clinic in Chicago, the Dr. stated that in fact the hives were not psychogenic, as diagnosed in the 50's but rather an immune response to a dying thyroid. He teaches it in his class. If you have a case of severe hives, that cannot be attributable to anything, aspirin makes them worse, you can expect a thyroid malunction to show up within 3-4 years. They don't know why and are not sure what the immune system is detecting. But, whatever it is, it's not measurable at this time. At 26, I developed hypothyroidism. He found it remarkable that it took ten years, but it did happen. The Dermatology pamphlet on hives describes a condition as Uticaria (sp?). A form of hives. The only medication that has success in controlling the condition is Atarax. Perhaps you have one or the other or both or maybe they're the same thing. Dennis