How is chronic itch caused?

There are three major factors that can drive chronic itch. First is skin barrier dysfunction due to dry or damaged skin. Second, your immune system can become overactive and generate sensations of itch. Third, your nerves that are carrying signals of itch to your brain can begin to fire inappropriately. To treat chronic itch, all three of these basic causes must be monitored and brought under control. The dedicated team of itch professionals at SootheRx can help you with this process.

What are the symptoms?

Itch is the primary symptom, however, patients may also have red skin, scratch markers, and bleeding. Hot spots for itch in this setting include the middle of the scalp, back, abdomen, and arms and legs. Sometimes the itch can be more localized to just the scalp, the middle of the back, and your arms. However, most patients will have generalized itch all over.

How is it diagnosed?

Itching can be caused by a variety of underlying medical conditions that can be reasonably ruled out with a good medical history, x-rays, and appropriate laboratory tests. However, the SootheRx team relies mostly on the patient’s history along with our years of experience to determine the underlying cause.

What are the treatments?

There are no FDA-approved treatments for chronic itch. Therefore, optimal treatment is highly dependent on expert physician experience, off-label treatments based on symptoms, and truly understanding the kind of itch that the patient is experiencing. In other words, there is not one treatment protocol for every patient. At SootheRx, we take a personalized medicine approach to chronic itch.

What is the prognosis?

How is it prevented?

Unfortunately, most people do not even realize chronic itch is a problem until they develop it. However, we at SootheRx do believe there are ways to prevent chronic itch including taking good care of your skin, maintaining a healthy immune system, and nurturing your nervous system.