Arms Are Bright Red, Hot And Itchy. What Treatment Should Be Done?

Posted on Wed, 11 Jul 2012

Medically reviewed by Ask A Doctor - 24x7 Medical Review Team

Wed, 11 Jul 2012 Answered on

Sat, 28 Jul 2012 Last reviewed on

Question : My arms are bright red and keep itching they are also hot when they are red. They dont itch all the time. It was on my face then went to my forearm now on my upper arms

Answered by Dr. Kiran Kumar (2 hours later)

Hi,

Thanks for writing in.

Your symptoms are suggestive of allergy or urticaria. It is associated with redness, itching and sometimes increased temperature of the involved are of the body.

You will need to take antihistaminics. Even though your symptoms are intermittent, its advisable that you take antihistaminics for 3 - 4 weeks. You can take Tablet Cetrizine 10 mg once a day everyday for 3-4 weeks. In addition, keep a symptom diary and see what makes these symptoms worse. If you can identify what you are allergic to, avoiding that would be the mainstay of treatment.

If it still persists, do consult your physician for a work up. If you do not respond, you may need a short course of oral steroids.

Hope this answers your query.

Do get back if you need any further information.

Sincerely,

Dr Kiran.

Above answer was peer-reviewed by : Dr. Aparna Kohli