I am 73 years old and live inRio de Janeiro,Brazil.I have itching onmy skin at various parts of my body?

especiallynear the reproductive organs. no dermotologist or homopathic doctor has been able to help me. Reques any expert in this health problem for help.I shall feel greatly obliged for the answers.

I am 73 years old and live inRio de Janeiro,Brazil.I have itching onmy skin at various parts of my body?
Hives and angioedema


Hives or urticaria are red, itchy, swollen areas of the skin that can range in size and appear anywhere on the body. Approximately 25% of the U.S. population will experience an episode of hives at least once in their lives. Most common are acute cases of hives, where the cause is identifiable-often a viral infection, drug, food or latex. These hives usually go away spontaneously. Some people have chronic hives that occur almost daily for months to years. For these individuals, various circumstances or events, such as scratching, pressure or "nerves," may aggravate their hives. However, eliminating these triggers often has little effect on this condition.





Angioedema, a swelling of the deeper layers of the skin, sometimes occurs with hives. Angioedema is not red or itchy, and most often occurs in soft tissue such as the eyelids, mouth or genitals. Hives and angioedema may appear together or separately on the body. Hives are the result of a chemical called histamine -responsible for many of the symptoms of allergic reactions-in the upper layers of the skin. Angioedema results from the actions of these chemicals in the deeper layers of the skin. These chemicals are usually stored in our bodies' mast cells, which are cells heavily involved in allergic reactions. There are several identifiable triggers that release histamine and other chemicals from the mast cells, causing hives.





In adults, reactions to medicines are a common cause of acute hives. Medications known to cause hives or angioedema include aspirin and other non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) such as ibuprofen, high blood pressure medicines known as ACE-inhibitors, or pain-killers containing codeine or codeine-like drugs. Like all drug-induced hives, these reactions occur within only minutes to an hour of taking the drug. Adults can also develop hives after eating certain foods, including nuts, eggs, shellfish, soy, wheat or milk-the culprits in more than 90% of proven food-induced hives. In children, foods or viral infections such as a cold can trigger acute hives. Physical urticaria are hives resulting from an outside source: rubbing of the skin, cold, heat, physical exertion or exercise, pressure or direct exposure to sunlight. Patients with chronic urticaria often report that at least one of these triggers induces their hives.





Whenever there is an identifiable trigger of hives, it should be eliminated. In patients with acute hives, some drugs or foods may take days to be eliminated from the body. For these individuals, an allergist may prescribe antihistamines to relieve symptoms until the culprit is eliminated. For patients with chronic hives, treatment cannot control the eruptions; these hives will eventually disappear on their own, with or without treatment. For 50% of these patients, the hives will clear in three to 12 months; 40% will clear in one to five years. Up to 1.5% of these patients may experience these hives for more than 20 years.





Forty percent of patients with chronic hives will have at least one more episode of chronic hives in their lifetime. For these patients, the treatment objective is to provide comfort. If you experience chronic hives, your allergist will prescribe antihistamines, and will combine medications and adjust your dosages as needed for your individual symptoms. In rare cases, if antihistamines do not provide appropriate comfort, the allergist will prescribe an oral corticosteroid.





http://www.skinsite.com/index_dermatolog...





http://dir.yahoo.com/Health/Diseases_and...





Hopefully this helps!! Good luck!
Reply:you could have herpes
Reply:You are allergic to soap. Use a different soap for washing and laundry
Reply:see if the wash powder for your clothes is causing it!! a form of eczema?it could be just dry skin?
Reply:Scabies is another contagious skin disease caused by the mite Sarcoptes scabiei. The primary symptom -- incredibly itchy, red lesions -- results when the female mite burrows into the skin and deposits eggs and feces. Closed environments such as nursing homes and child-care centers provide ideal breeding grounds for the parasite, which needs a human host to survive. An estimated 300 million new cases spring up each year worldwide. The number of cases in the United States is currently on the rise, probably because more children under the age of 5 are being cared for in day-care centers.





Head lice (Pediculus humanus capitis) are about the size of a sesame seed and can be easily seen, although they hide quickly in response to light. Their eggs, called nits, are barely visible, whitish ovals cemented to hair shafts. Head lice are extremely contagious, especially among schoolchildren. They afflict an estimated 6 million to 12 million children in the United States. Twice as many girls as boys get head lice, not because of greater hair length, but because girls have more physical contact with one another and share more personal articles (hats, clothing, combs, headphones) that can transmit head lice. Head lice are rare among African-Americans, possibly because the shafts of their hair have a shape that lice cannot grasp easily.





Pubic lice (Phthirius pubis) are yellow-gray insects found in the pubic region and transmitted by sexual contact. The size of a pinhead, they are slightly translucent and barely visible against light-colored skin. They are also called crab lice, or crabs, because of their shape and the crab-like claws with which they cling to hair. Eggs can barely be seen as tiny white particles glued so firmly to hair shafts that they are not removed by normal washing.





Body lice (Pediculus humanus corporis) are nearly identical in appearance to head lice but are more difficult to find. When not feeding, they tend to hide in the seams of clothing and folds of bedding. Signs of their presence are scratch marks, hives, or small red pimples, usually on the shoulders, torso, or buttocks. If the lice are not treated, the person can develop complications such as bacterial infection of the affected area. Body lice can also spread blood infections.





Hope This Helped
Reply:do not scratch...it will only make it worse....can you get an antihistamine where you are? If so I would recommend "claritn."..you take 1 every 24 hours...good luck and hope it helps.
Reply:Try a simple athletes foot cream. I had a similar problem once and that worked.