Il prurito atopico

Atopic dermatitis is the most frequent skin disease characterized by severe itching. The treatment of atopic itching should start from the evaluation of its severity. An itching score based on the number of crises during daytime, the period of waking up during the night and the extension of scratch marks is suggested. The parents must be trained to prevent the crises of itching and to stop them as soon as possible. Finally, the indications and effectiveness of symptomatic treatments of pruritus such as emollients, corticosteroid creams and oral antihistamines are reviewed.