title: Facing the challenges of chronic pruritus: a report from a multi-disciplinary medical itch centre in Germany.
abstract: The complex nature and difficult-to-establish aetiology of chronic pruritus (CP) makes it challenging to provide medical care for patients with CP. This challenge can only be met with a multidisciplinary approach. The first multidisciplinary Itch Centre in Germany was established at the University of Münster in 2002 to meet the needs of this patient population. More than 2,500 outpatients and 400 inpatients are diagnosed and receive treatment each year. To ensure evidence-based medical care, an electronic system for medical documentation and patient-reported outcomes was established. Automated data transfer to a research database enables comprehensive data analysis. Our translational research has characterized peripheral and central itch mechanisms, provided novel clustering of CP patients, and identified novel target-specific therapies (e.g. neurokinin 1 receptor-antagonist). The multidisciplinary approach, combined with basic, clinical and translational research, enables comprehensive medical care of patients as well as implementation of high-quality experimental and clinical studies.
authors.affiliation: Department of Dermatology, Competence Center Chronic Pruritus, University Hospital of Münster, Von-Esmarch-Str. 58, DE-48149 Münster, Germany. sonja.staender@uni-muenster.de.
authors.forename: Sonja
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Ständer
authors.forename: Esther
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Pogatzki-Zahn
authors.forename: Astrid
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Stumpf
authors.forename: Fleur
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Fritz
authors.forename: Bettina
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Pfleiderer
authors.forename: Anika
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Ritzkat
authors.forename: Philipp
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Bruland
authors.forename: Tobias
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Lotts
authors.forename: Carsten
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Müller-Tidow
authors.forename: Gereon
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Heuft
authors.forename: Hermann-Joseph
authors.initials: HJ
authors.lastname: Pavenstädt
authors.forename: Gudrun
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Schneider
authors.forename: Hugo
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Van Aken
authors.forename: Walter
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Heindel
authors.forename: Heinz
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Wiendl
authors.forename: Martin
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Dugas
authors.forename: Thomas A
authors.initials: TA
authors.lastname: Luger
mesh_terms: D000982:Antipruritics / Q000627:therapeutic use; D002908:Chronic Disease; D003299:Cooperative Behavior; D057286:Electronic Health Records / Q000458:organization & administration; D005858:Germany / Q000453:epidemiology; D006801:Humans; D033183:Interdisciplinary Communication; D017146:Models, Organizational; D010044:Outpatient Clinics, Hospital / Q000458:organization & administration*; D010348:Patient Care Team / Q000458:organization & administration*; D011237:Predictive Value of Tests; D011379:Prognosis; D016730:Program Development; D011537:Pruritus / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000503:physiopathology; D012307:Risk Factors; D057170:Translational Research, Biomedical / Q000458:organization & administration; D057188:Workflow
chemical_list: D000982:Antipruritics