title: Chronic spontaneous urticaria: etiology and pathogenesis.
abstract: Urticaria affects individuals of all ages and is commonplace. Nearly 1 in 5 individuals will experience an episode of urticaria in their lifetime, while the chronic form of disease has an estimated annual prevalence of approximately 1% of the population. Given the similarity of chronic urticaria symptoms to those seen in patients suffering an allergic reaction, the condition often leads to a search for an external cause. In most cases, no external trigger factor is identified. At present several theories of pathogenesis exist, none of which is firmly established.
authors.affiliation: Division of Allergy and Clinical Immunology, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Johns Hopkins Asthma and Allergy Center, 5501 Hopkins Bayview Circle, Room 2B. 71B, Baltimore, MD 21224, USA. Electronic address: ssaini@jhmi.edu.
authors.forename: Sarbjit S
authors.initials: SS
authors.lastname: Saini
mesh_terms: D015551:Autoimmunity; D002908:Chronic Disease; D006801:Humans; D011379:Prognosis; D012307:Risk Factors; D014581:Urticaria / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000209:etiology*
keywords: Basophils; Chronic urticaria; Mast cells