Current Management of Chronic Pruritus by French Dermatologists

Knowledge concerning pruritus is rapidly evolving and could deeply modify its management. The main objective was to evaluate the management of chronic pruritus by French dermatologists and their current knowledge. This prospective descriptive study used an online questionnaire, which was sent to French dermatologists via the newsletters of 3 dermatological associations. A total of 361 responses to the questionnaire were received, 80.1% from qualified dermatologists, 29.0% from dermatologists with their main practice in hospitals. Only half of respondents considered pruritus chronic after 6 weeks. The initial laboratory work-up included blood count (98.8%), creatinine (93.9%), liver function tests (98.6%), thyroid-stimulating hormone (93.9%), and serum protein electrophoresis (81.7%). There was a significant difference between hospital and non-hospital practitioners in the evaluation of creatinine, fasting blood glucose, viral serologies, syphilis serology, and skin biopsies. Some 34.6% of dermatologists disagreed that pruritus is present in the majority of psoriasis patients. French dermatologists' knowledge of chronic pruritus and its management is satisfactory, but there is still room for improvement and harmonization.