Promazine in the treatment of delusional parasitosis

Delusional parasitosis (DP) is an uncommon and complex to treat form of delusional disorder, somatic type. The syndrome may occur in association with a number of psychotic disorders, such as schizophrenia, organic mental disorder, or even in dementia with behavioral and psychological symptoms. Evidence of efficacy of treatment options is weak and there is little known about the specific use of typical and atypical antipsychotics. We report on a case of primary DP in a 75-year-old Caucasian woman with a 3-year-long history of dermatological consultations due to unspecified complains who responded to the typical antipsychotic promazine. This case is unique in pharmacological respect as it presents the first reported DP treatment with promazine. It also raises the issue of efficacy and safety of low-potency typical antipsychotics in the elderly population.