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Principle of Drug Treatments for Itch

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Dermatopharmacology of Topical Preparations

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Abstract

Itch is a skin sensation leading to a desire to scratch. The sensation is different from pain and touch in its nature, persistence and localisation. Itch can be regarded as a physiological and well-adapted sensation when it elicits a scratch response that removes potentially harmful stimuli from the skin, such as fibres, chemicals or parasites. Tissue damage caused by scratching may lead to acute conditions such as scratch prurigo (itchy wheals from scratching) or to the chronic lichenified patches of prurigo nodularis.

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Authors
  1. Ing-Jun Chen
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Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Abteilung Biopharmazie Spirig AG, Pharmazeutische Präparate, 4622, Egerkingen, Switzerland

    Bernard Gabard

  2. Institut für Spital-Pharmazie, Universitätskliniken/Kantonspital Basel, Spitalstraße 26, 4031, Basel, Switzerland

    Christian Surber

  3. Klinik für Hautkrankheiten, Klinikum der Friedrich Schiller-Universität Jena, Erfurter Straße 35, 07740, Jena, Germany

    Peter Elsner

  4. Laboratoires Spirig SA, 109, Boulevard d’Haussonville, 5400, Nancy, France

    Pierre Treffel

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© 2000 Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg

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Chen, IJ. (2000). Principle of Drug Treatments for Itch. In: Gabard, B., Surber, C., Elsner, P., Treffel, P. (eds) Dermatopharmacology of Topical Preparations. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-57145-9_14

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-57145-9_14

  • Publisher Name: Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-642-62960-0

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-642-57145-9

  • eBook Packages: Springer Book Archive

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