Hives & allergic rashes in children
Hives — itchy raised welts that appear, move and vanish — are alarming to see on your child. Sometimes they’re an allergic reaction with a clear trigger. Just as often, especially when they keep recurring, they’re not caused by allergy at all.
That distinction matters enormously. It’s the difference between a family avoiding half the pantry unnecessarily and a child getting simple, effective treatment while the hives settle on their own.
Why Dr O’Reilly
Specialist care, not a fifteen-minute appointment
Dr Elize O’Reilly (BMedSci, MBBS(Hons), MHL, FRACP) is a paediatric immunologist and allergist and a general paediatrician — the specialist in the room at every appointment. Care at Little Reactions is unhurried, evidence-based and explained in plain language, and your GP stays in the loop with letters you can both read.
- FRACP specialist
- Paediatric-only practice
- Same-day test results
How we work out the cause
The history usually tells us whether this is allergy — testing then confirms it, rather than fishing:
- A structured timeline of episodes against foods, medicines, illness and activity
- Skin-prick or blood testing only where the story points to a genuine trigger
- A clear explanation when hives are not allergic — which is common, and good news
How we treat it
Almost all children with hives can be made comfortable quickly:
- A stepped antihistamine plan that controls symptoms safely
- Trigger avoidance only where a trigger is actually proven
- A plan for flare-ups, so 2am hives don’t mean an emergency dash
- Review and escalation pathways for the small group with stubborn chronic urticaria
