title: Pruritus: an overview. What drives people to scratch an itch?
abstract: Pruritus is a common complaint associated with many conditions. It negatively impacts sleep, quality of life, and mortality. Itch is transmitted along both histaminergic and non-histaminergic pathways with a complex interplay between keratinocytes, immune cells and cutaneous neurons. Individuals who present with pruritus should undergo a thorough assessment, especially those over 65 years old, to exclude underlying malignancy. Treatment no longer consists of antihistamines alone. Physicians now have an array of therapies in their armamentarium, to help alleviate this distressing symptom.
authors.affiliation: Department of Dermatology/Temple Itch Center, Lewis Katz School of Medicine, Temple University, 3322 North Broad Street - Suite 212, Philadelphia, PA 19140, USA.
authors.forename: Michael Joseph
authors.initials: MJ
authors.lastname: Lavery
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurosciences, Royal Victoria Hospital, 274 Grosvenor Road, Belfast, BT12 6BA.
authors.forename: Michael Owen
authors.initials: MO
authors.lastname: Kinney
authors.affiliation: Department of Dermatology/Temple Itch Center, Lewis Katz School of Medicine, Temple University, 3322 North Broad Street - Suite 212, Philadelphia, PA 19140, USA.
authors.forename: Hideki
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Mochizuki
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurosciences, Royal Victoria Hospital, 274 Grosvenor Road, Belfast, BT12 6BA.
authors.forename: John
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Craig
authors.affiliation: Department of Dermatology/Temple Itch Center, Lewis Katz School of Medicine, Temple University, 3322 North Broad Street - Suite 212, Philadelphia, PA 19140, USA.
authors.forename: Gil
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Yosipovitch
mesh_terms: D003937:Diagnosis, Differential; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007111:Immunity, Cellular; D008875:Middle Aged; D011537:Pruritus / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000276:immunology / Q000523:psychology; D011788:Quality of Life
keywords: Pruritus; histaminergic; immune cells; keratinocytes; malignancy; neurobiology; neuropathic; non-histaminergic; unmyelinated C-nerve fibers