What is the Difference Between Scabies and Urticaria

The key difference between scabies and urticaria is that scabies is a skin rash due to a mite called Sarcoptes scarbiei, while urticaria is a skin rash due to an allergic reaction to food or something people have touched.

Skin rashes are often red, inflamed, bumpy, dry, itchy, or painful. They are mainly due to allergens, irritants, bacteria, mites, or viruses. Scabies and urticaria are two medical conditions that result in skin rashes. These skin rashes cause itching in both conditions.

CONTENTS

1. Overview and Key Difference
2. What is Scabies  
3. What is Urticaria
4. Similarities – Scabies and Urticaria
5. Scabies vs Urticaria in Tabular Form
6. Summary – Scabies vs Urticaria

What is Scabies?

Scabies is a medical condition that is due to a mite called Sarcoptes scarbiei. This condition causes a skin rash that is itchy. It also interrupts sleep. This little bug makes burrows under the skin and causes red bumps and severe itching in the skin. Scabies spreads from person to person easily, especially in people who live close together. These mites usually live in the folds and narrow cracks of the skin. The risk factors for this condition include people living in crowded conditions, infants or children, elderly people, and healthcare workers. Moreover, the symptoms of this condition may include red skin bumps or rashes, intense itching (which worsens at night), bumps that are infected due to scratching, rashes that look greyish, and skin-coloured lines on the skin.

Scabies can be diagnosed through physical examination and skin biopsy. Furthermore, the treatment options for scabies may include permethrin cream, ivermectin, an antiparasitic pill given in a single dose, and antihistamines.

What is Urticaria?

Urticaria or hives is a medical condition that causes skin rashes due to an allergic reaction to food or something people have touched. Hives are raised red bumps, welts, or splotches on the skin. Acute urticaria is caused by an allergic reaction to something people put into their body, like food, drink or medication, or something that they touch. On the other hand, chronic hives are caused by infections from bacteria or viruses or due to other medical conditions like lupus. The risk factors for this condition include people allergic to certain things, children who suffer from asthma, allergic rhinitis, atopic dermatitis, and extreme stress. Moreover, the symptoms of this condition may include raised welts or bumps, hives blanch, itchy skin, swelling or puffiness called angioedema, and painful swelling in the lips, eyes, and inside the throat.

Urticaria is diagnosed through physical examination, allergy test, skin biopsy, and blood test. Furthermore, treatment options for urticaria may include allergy medications (diphenhydramine), allergy shots, over-the-counter (OTC) hydrocortisone or antihistamine cream, oral steroids (prednisone), and epinephrine.

What are the Similarities Between Scabies and Urticaria?

• Scabies and urticaria are two medical conditions that result in skin rashes.
• Both conditions have similar symptoms, like red bumps, itchiness, etc.
• These conditions can be caused due to infectious organisms.
• Both conditions can be diagnosed through physical examination and skin biopsy.
• They are treated through prescribed and over-the-counter creams, pills, etc.

What is the Difference Between Scabies and Urticaria?

Scabies is a medical condition that results in skin rashes due to the Sarcoptes scarbiei, which is a mite, while urticaria is a medical condition that results in skin rashes due to an allergic reaction to food or something people have touched. Thus, this is the key difference between scabies and urticaria. Furthermore, the risk factors for scabies include people living in crowded conditions, infants or children, elderly people, and healthcare workers. On the other hand, the risk factors for urticaria include people allergic to certain things, children who suffer from asthma, allergic rhinitis, atopic dermatitis, and extreme stress.

The below infographic presents the differences between scabies and urticaria in tabular form for side-by-side comparison.

Summary – Scabies vs Urticaria

Scabies and urticaria are two medical conditions that cause red bumpy rashes, which are very itchy. However, scabies occurs due to a mite called Sarcoptes scarbiei, while urticaria causes skin rashes due to an allergic reaction to food, something people have touched, bacteria or viruses, or due to other medical conditions like lupus. So, this summarizes the difference between scabies and urticaria.

Reference:

1. “Scabies: Pictures of Rash & Mites, Symptoms, Treatment.” WebMD.
2. “Hives: Causes, Symptoms, Diagnosis, Treatment & Prevention.” Cleveland Clinic.

Image Courtesy:

1. “Sites of scabies” By Mikael Häggström – CDC web site & DPDx – Laboratory Identification of Parasites of Public Health Concern & Scabies (Public Domain) via Commons Wikimedia
2. “Chronic spontaneous urticaria” By (CC BY 4.0) via Commons Wikimedia