Minnesota toddler with rare allergy to water

Fox 5
Wed, 21 Feb 2018 11:04 UTC

© Net Parents Org

Ivy Angerman of Minnesota is full of energy and curiosity like any 18-month-old child. Her parents say she is a happy toddler except when it comes to bath time. Doctors recently diagnosed ivy with aquagenic urticaria, a rare allergy to water that causes severe hives.

"As a father, it absolutely breaks your heart," Dan Angerman, her father, told KMSP/Fox9.com.

"I just thought, 'Is she ever going to be able to go to daycare? Is she ever going to be able to go to public school? Is she ever going to be able to go to the ocean?" mom Brittany Angerman said.

Doctors told Dan and Brittany Angerman that Ivy may be the youngest person to ever be diagnosed with the condition. Symptoms normally appear in teenage years. No cure exists but people can learn to live with this condition.

"The problem is that every time your body comes in contact with water, you may have a reaction," Dr. Clenton Coleman of Holy Name Medical Center told Fox 5. "So the treatment may include antihistamines, like Benadryl, or most likely reducing your exposure to water contact."

Ivy can only tolerate being in water for 15 seconds before her skin begins to burn and develop blisters. Her mother took video to show Ivy's doctors how her body reacts to water.

"They have her on antihistamines, which seem to be helping the severity of the reactions," Dan Angerman said.

Experts say to minimize ivy's reactions, they need to purify the water systems and use central air so she doesn't overheat.

"I just hope that she can actually drink water and be able to lead a somewhat normal life," Brittany Angerman said.

Ivy's parents say until researchers find a cure, they are doing their best to keep their little girl as healthy and happy as possible.

The condition is so rare not much is known about how to treat it. Only about 50 cases have been documented in medical literature.

Comment: It's a very bizarre and tragic condition to have. From "The woman who is allergic to water" we read:

Technically, the condition isn't actually an allergy at all, since it's likely caused by an immune reaction to something within the body, rather than an over-reaction to something foreign, such as pollen or peanuts.

The earliest theory to explain how it works is that water is interacting with the outermost layer of skin, which consists mostly of dead skin cells, or the oily substance which keeps skin moist. Contact with water may cause these components to release toxic compounds, which in turn leads to an immune reaction.

Others have suggested that water may simply dissolve chemicals in the layer of dead skin, allowing them to penetrate deeper where they can cause an immune reaction.