Abstract

Psychogenic pruritus (PP) is usually an exclusion diagnosis that cannot be explained with organic reasons, is triggered or aggravated by psychological factors. We report a case of a female patient with an itching complaint for thirty-five years, the onset or worsening of which was preceded by marital conflicts. After the patient had been diagnosed with PP, naltrexone 25 mg/day was started orally. Her complaints of itching urge and pruritis completely ended since the beginning of the medication. PP is thought to occur mainly through the opioid receptors of the central nervous system. Oral opioid receptor antagonist naltrexone can be used safely in the treatment of PP in terms of its potential to reduce itching and itching behavior as well as its side effect profile.

Key words: psychogenic pruritus, naltrexone, itch, somatic symptom disorder