Abigaël is 15 years old and she suffers from a rare disease which ruins her life: aquagenic urticaria. She testifies to our colleagues from DailyMail : “[avant d’être diagnostiquée] when it rained, it hurt a lot, it was like acid. I thought that was normal. (…) Today I cry like a normal person and it hurts. My face turns red and burns very strongly.“
What is aquagenic urticaria? Aquagenic urticaria is a rare disease that affects an average of 1 in 230 million people worldwide. This pathology is comparable to an allergy: in patients who are affected, the slightest contact with water (bottled water, bathing water, even rainwater, perspiration or tears, etc.) leads to an excessive reaction and abnormal immune system, the body’s “defense system”.
An extremely rare disease that mainly affects young women
“When I tell people I’m allergic to water, they think it’s absolutely ridiculous and many are shocked. They always point out that our bodies are made of water“explains the young American.
However, aquagenic urticaria is very real: as stated a study published in December 2015this pathology affects “preferentially young women. It is characterized by the appearance of erythematous and pruritic plaques a few minutes after the start of contact with water, regardless of its temperature.“.
Unfortunately, at present, there is no treatment for aquagenic urticaria: treatments based on antihistamines and phototherapy are generally offered with variable effectiveness. “Gotta check the labels but everything in this world contains water“regrets the teenager who only drinks very slightly diluted fruit juices.
Read also :
- Urticaria: one in 5 people affected
- She lives in Canada but suffers from a winter allergy
- Allergy: a man almost froze to death…coming out of his shower
