Health & Medicine
17-Year-Old Girl Suffers From Rare Water Allergy
Kathleen Lees
First Posted: Apr 08, 2015 06:44 PM EDT
Water is an essential, everyday element for most people. But for Alexandra Allen, it's a little bit different.
The 17-year-old woman from Mapleton, Utah, is one of about 50 known people in the world to be diagnosed with aquagenic urticaria, a condition that causes an allergic reaction when rain, snow, sweat or tears graces her skin, causing her to break out in hives.
"It feels like your skin has been sandpapered down until there's only one layer left and it itches, but you can't itch it or it will break and burn and bleed," she told the Desert News.
Allen was just about 12 when she first noticed the condition. After swimming in a pool while on vacation with her family, she woke up to burning itchy hives, according to The American Register.
At 15, she was officially diagnosed with the condition after consulting with a dermatologist, according to Fox News. Since then, she has had to become a vegetarian to reduce the oils in her skin, steer clear of swimming pools and can only take showers two to three times a week. She also must avoid sweating.
Relatively little is known about the problem, but it appears to be more common in women and typically occurs during the onset of puberty.
A 2011 study published in the journal Annals of Dermatology also reported the first three cases of aquagenic urticarial reported back in 1964. Fewer than 100 cases have since between discussed in scientific literature.
One theory suggests that the skin's sweat glands trigger both hives and itchiness, according to Cornell Medical Center dermatologist Dr. Barney J. Kenet, via ABC News.
"It's a rare thing," Kenet said. "We learn about it in medical school, though I have never seen a case in my practice."
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First Posted: Apr 08, 2015 06:44 PM EDT
Water is an essential, everyday element for most people. But for Alexandra Allen, it's a little bit different.
The 17-year-old woman from Mapleton, Utah, is one of about 50 known people in the world to be diagnosed with aquagenic urticaria, a condition that causes an allergic reaction when rain, snow, sweat or tears graces her skin, causing her to break out in hives.
"It feels like your skin has been sandpapered down until there's only one layer left and it itches, but you can't itch it or it will break and burn and bleed," she told the Desert News.
Allen was just about 12 when she first noticed the condition. After swimming in a pool while on vacation with her family, she woke up to burning itchy hives, according to The American Register.
At 15, she was officially diagnosed with the condition after consulting with a dermatologist, according to Fox News. Since then, she has had to become a vegetarian to reduce the oils in her skin, steer clear of swimming pools and can only take showers two to three times a week. She also must avoid sweating.
Relatively little is known about the problem, but it appears to be more common in women and typically occurs during the onset of puberty.
A 2011 study published in the journal Annals of Dermatology also reported the first three cases of aquagenic urticarial reported back in 1964. Fewer than 100 cases have since between discussed in scientific literature.
One theory suggests that the skin's sweat glands trigger both hives and itchiness, according to Cornell Medical Center dermatologist Dr. Barney J. Kenet, via ABC News.
"It's a rare thing," Kenet said. "We learn about it in medical school, though I have never seen a case in my practice."
See Now: NASA's Juno Spacecraft's Rendezvous With Jupiter's Mammoth Cyclone