The Dermatology Blog

I am an admitted itch sufferer, I have read all of your posts, and its great to know more about this since most doctors want you to spend hundreds on “rule-outs” before diagnosis is confirmed. Please respond to my post and…hear me out!

I too, believe that BPR is the cause of my itching(undiagnosed), however I’m reluctant to say that it’s caused by exposure to UV light, although I can see where the heat from the sun may cause the nerve to be more susceptible to inflammatory reaction. It’s my belief that there is some direct association with spinal nerves;

In 04′ I fell from a roof ( I was a roofer- plenty of sun exposure),broke both wrists and fractured my back, I had never experienced this unbearable itching before that time. I am curious- for my own research studies, if any of you also have ever experienced a cluster headache as I have? Since both cervicogenic headaches and BPR are associated with the cervical area of the spine, I think there may be a link to the nerves @ C5 and the conditions mentioned above. Additionally, after reading about the effectiveness of the drug Gabapentin, to my suprise this is also a treatment provided for cervicogenic headaches IE; migraines,clusters etc., with an effective rate @ 16-40 percent.
Obviously, everyone here understands their own body and we all seem somewhat educated. Does anyone here suffer from unexplained headaches or have anything to add to what I’ve written. Thank you for your thoughts/ideas in advanced.

I’ve suffered off and on with this itching for several years, thinking it was some kind of heat rash since I had it only during the warmest months of the year. Finally went to my derm because I was having such a hard time sleeping. She diagnosed BRP almost immediately and gave me a prescrption for Zonalon. Reading all the warnings on the packaging kind of scared me. I’m a marathon runner, and believe in icing for almost anything….so tried it on my itching arms the same way I would for an injury: Icing for 20 minutes, 3 times a day. This has produced pretty miraculous results! Ice in the moring, afternoon, and before bed, even if you aren’t itching at those times. I have slept peacefully for the last month even tho I’m still in the sun all day every day (for my job) and it’s been in the 90’s and 100’s for the past month.

@James
Reading your post I have to say that I have never injured my back. I was treated neck pain years ago I saw a chiropractor for almost a year with no real answer too the pain. Has anyone ever been diagnosed with the Epstein Barr virus? I had it about 12 years ago. I wonder if that has in bearing on this issue. But the explained itching for me I believe that is related to the sun. No headaches for me. I have had this itch for 10+. It drives me in sane. The ice pack for the only relief I had found. After reading all the post, I saw my Dr. and she did give me a prescription for Gabapentin and it is a wonder drug. I know a friend that takes it for migraines, which really helps her. I do believe that it is a nerve condition, without a doubt. I hope you are willing to try Gabapentin. IT REALLY WORKS FOR ME AND ALLOT OF OTHER PEOPLE ON THIS SITE.

Kindest regards,

Vickie

@claudia

There is no cream for this itch, believe me I have tried them all. you can read my other postings. Please try the drug Gabapentin, it is a miracle. I did experience dizziness for the first few days,but that side effect is gone. I hope your itching has gone for the season. Good luck to you Claudia.

Vickie

James- I have had a history of”cluster” and migraine headaches- and must say that I have had none since being on the gabapentin. Glad you mentioned that,as I had not made the co-relation. (My headacheswerenot frequent enough to warrant RX,but the cluster headaches always scared me-a searing sharp pain in the temple,in rapid succession.Diagnosed by my doc as the cluster migraine. On very rare occasions,I will experience a regular migraine- perhaps once every 2 years,at most.(But had them regularly as a child)

Vickie- YAY!! I am so happy for you that this drug is workingand that the dizziness has subsided.

Claudia- you are fortunate that the icing for only 20 minutes works for you. As you have read, most of us have had to sleep with ice packs on continuosly.

As for the sun-no one is exactly sure why it seems to aggravate the condition.But I have not curtained my sun exposure this summer (Impossible- I am always outdoors, year round as I own a horse farm), and I (shamefully) do not use sun screen.
Yet, Ihave had no itching since being on the Rx.

@Janice
Janice I have to tell you that you are my angel, without your postings I would have never tried gabapentin. I can see where you try to help everyone. I am so glad there are people like you. I feel like you are a caring person. God bless you for all of your concerns. I live in Virgina,what State do you live in? Take care.

I live in Delaware, about 8 miles from Rehoboth Beach. Sooo- altho I havetn been to the beach in years, we do have a pool on the farm,and I swim laps everyday,plus, I am outside cutting fields and doing all other assorted farm chores, so I get ALOT of sun exposure.

Vicki, I just want others here who have suffered as we to be persuaded to atleast consult their doctor about Gabapentin. I dont like taking drugs- I try to eat healthy and stay active to reduce the risk of health problems that require medication. Gabapentin and Advair (for allergy-induced asthma) are the only two Rx’s I need to take at this time (just turned 56 yesterday),and I wouldnt want to be without either!

Where in VA are you? I frequently go to the Middleburg area with my horses.

Thanks for your kind words- I’m just so happy to hear you are finding relief.I do so remember what it was like to be awake all night, scratching till my skin bled, and crying in agonized frustration.My husband totally thinking I was going crazy. And I was.

Hi Janice,

It was nice hearing from you. It is a small world, I live 5 miles north of Winchester, in a little town call Clear Brook. My brother-in-law works in Middleburg on a farm. I have to tell you that I tried only taking the 100mg twice a day and 300mg at bedtime. But it just did not work for me. So I am taking 3×300mg a day. There is not side effects at all. Yesterday was a terrible day for itching, I think the humidity make it worse. I have to keep my house so cold, that it feels like I live in Alaska. My husband freezes to death. He is very supportive of my illness. I don’t think that he think that I am losing my mind. LOL
I do have a Dr.’s Appt. in November with a very high-recommended Dermatologist in November. I have lupus and the Dr. I see has beg me for years to go see him, so I guess I will go this time. Hopefully one day they will detect the real cause for this itching. I can not believe the posting from other people. It does assure me that I am not crazy. Have a great weekend–I am sure will we talk again soon.

Kindest regards,

Vickie

going on 12 years with this dilemma. tried all kinds of things, diet changes, yoga, creams (otc and prescription). What is currently working for me is prudoxin 5% cream and a sun shirt. History: my itch started out being seasonal and then progressed to a daily nightmare with ice being the only solution. After at least 2 dozen doctors, I came across these blogs and then got a confirmed diagnosis from a dermatologist who has encountered only one other case of Brachialradial Pruritus. He biopsied a plug of skin from my arm near the elbow. I couldn’t even feel when the nurse was taking out that plug of skin…thats got to tell you something about the loss of nerve connection. He sent it to UC Davis Med for confirmation. After feeling so crazed for so long, it was good to get confirmation. Now I want to know the cause….. By the way, there are extensive blogs posted on on medhelp. Here’s the link to one of the forums… http://www.medhelp.org/posts/Dermatology/itchy-arms–BRACHIORADIAL-PRURITUS/show/664851. Hope this helps! Keep posting and keep searching!!!!!

Anita

Could you tell me what is a sun shirt. I have seen many people memtion a sun shirt on other sites. Did the biopsy prove that is was Brachialradial Pruritus? What did he prescribe for you? I hope that the itching has gotten better for you. Have you tried Gabapentin? It seems to be helping me allot. I can not believe the people that suffers from this terrible illness. I want answers…

@anita

I thought that I was going crazy! The itching and burning on my arms is almost unbearable. The only relief that I have found is ice. I have gone to dermatologist and an allergist. I am thinking about going to a neurologist.

<. I am thinking about going to a neurologist.

If the allergist and the dermatologist havent been able to help you, then you need to see the neurologist, ASAP. A cervical spine xray and/or MRI should be the next step, IMO. Dont wait any longer- why suffer if there is a chance that there is a drug out there that can help!
Janice- Still itch -free and sleeping thru the night without the aid of creams or ice!

Vicki- a sun shirt is a shirt made with fabric that has a sun shield- the fabric prevents any UV rays from penetrating thru to the skin. Although you wouldnt know it, regular fabrics like cotton and synthetics do not block the UV rays 100%.

Thanks Janice. Justing wondering where do you find that shirt? Have a great day!!

Hi Viki- check Orvis,Cabelas, Travelsmith or any big outdoor- sports oriented stores. They are a specialty item, and are not cheap. But from what I remember reading about them- the fabric is very light and comfortable,even in hot temps.

I was surprised that i was able to spend virtually the same amount of time outdoors this summer without protection from the sun and still didnt have any problems with BRP. It’s not definite that sun exposure is the cause or exacerbates the condition, but I dont advocate excessive UV exposure either!

You havent mentioned how you are doing on the Rx. Are you able to sleep through the nights now, without ice?? Has the dizziness side effect abated? Inquiring minds want to know!

i gott the shingle 5 years now it went to my nerve sistem on my left side ribs and my back upper left the pain is brutal is there every day and night the doctors several of them they have no idea wath to do i had block shots i tried nuranten gabapeting electic shoks the burning and very sharp pain thi doc the other day i went to get a block shot before he was getting rady to inject me he said i dont think this is gonna do any good i feel they are so non wanting to help i’ve been taking liryca i think now i’m need of this drug and the doc put me on ativan i have post herpetic neuralgia they tell me i put ice but notting seems to help wath to do any one of you have this brutal pain burning and like stabbing pain is there any doctor or person to know how to cure this this doc suggested i smoke pot i even yry some chine erbes some told me to take vitamine e or d or b.do you have the same thing let me know

Thanks fot the info. on the shirt. I tried to decrease my odsage to 2×100 and 1×300 at bedtime. It just was not working for me. So I am back on 3×300 aday. I do not have any itching with that dose. Maybe when the cold weather is here to stay it will go away until next year. I can not wait to see if we have to keep taking it year around. Have a good day

The itch started in June and usually lasted until November. That was about 6 years ago. Now I have it all year round and the last couple of months have been the absolute worst!! I’ve been taking the gabapentin for several years and my dosage varies based on the time of year. I do take it all year round. In the winter I take 1 300 mg in the morning and one at night. Now I’m taking 2 300 mgs three times a day and if necessary a couple of more right before I go to sleep. I do not want to reach the maximum dosage (2400 mgs) because it scares me to death that it will stop working for me. If that happens, I cannot imagine what I will do.

O my- Maxine, that is not very encouraging for those of us whom are just beginning to use this drug. Do you have any history of cervical spine problems? And if so, please explain.

No history. In fact two years ago I had to have cervical disk replacement surgery (not because of “the itch”) but thought it might help…it did not. I just keep treating the symptoms. My opinion is that this is like an allergy. You cannot cure allergies, but you can treat the symptoms. That’s what we have to do…treat the symptoms. Use the gabapentin, mineral ice, freeze it, calomine lotion, ice cubes, etc. etc. just to stop the itching. If anyone has any other suggestions, I open to hearing them.

Maxine- Obviously,if you “had to have cervical disk replacement surgery” 2 years ago, you have/had a problem with your cervical spine. Something was wrong to require the surgery. My point is only to try to find the common denominator amongst us all-and cervical spine issues seems to be “it”.

Hello fellow itchers, I’m so happy to find you all. I started with this last year and thought I was out of my mind. My husband searchd the Internet and was able to give a name to my disorder. Of course, that didn’t help much since my none of the Dr.s I’ve seen have ever heard of it. My GP went with it though and referred me to a neurologist. He had no knowledge of this disorder but I had a nerve conduction study and had no abnormalities. When I had my MRI, it was noticed that I had a bulging disc between C-4 adn C-5 and C-5 and C-6. I am absolutely convinced this is not related to the sun (though I AM a sunworshipper) but is a nerve thing. I was on Lyrica for a while and it helped a little but did not take care of the itching totally. I found out about ice last year and it was a life saver (though it’s not fun to get up in the middle of the night and go sit in one’s family room holding ice packs on one’s arms for 20 minutes!!). I have found that if I lay FLAT ON MY BACK

with no pillow, I don’t have the itching at night. I ended up taking a steroid pack last year and it waent away and silly me……… I thought it was a fluky thing I was cured of. I thought I had doen something to my neck at the gym and would not have the problem anymore. I cut way back on what I do at the gym and life went on perfectly fine until a few weeks ago – almost the same time it started last year!!! What’s up with that seasonal thing???? Then, I thought mlaybe I did soemthing at the gym again but I no longer think so. I think it’s stress related (very stressful time at work for me) but also, everyone seems to say it’s seasonal. The latest thing my Dr. is trying is myofascial massages concentrated on my back and neck. When the massuese massages my back on my left side, (it’s only my left side so far this year but last year it was both)mly arm itches. WHAT IS THE ANSWER FOR US?? A lot of people have mentioned Gabapentin. I will try it but I don’t like take drugs on a regular basis. There is a link to a study in Germany about a woman who had surgery on her neck and was cured. I’m not ready to go there yet but it’s out there if we need it. Here’s the link http://www.nature.com/nrneurol/journal/v4/n6/full/ncpneuro0807.html Read after the MRI part. It says: “The patient recovered completely from the itching and burning sensations within 1 week after surgery.”

Janice and Vicky, I live in Northern Virginia and my daughter is a horse addict Let me know if you ever want to get together. I find comfort in knowing others who have this ridiculous problem!!:)

Hello everyone! After much research I think I finally have the answer to my itchy arms-BPR! Itchy doesn’t really do it justice does it? I have suffered from this for 5-6 yrs. I was diagnosed with MS this summer and while I was lucky not to have MS lesions on my spine (they are on my brain) they told me I have very bad stenosis and degeneration of the c5-c6 region. While I have garnered great success with my MS symptoms through my new way of eating (no gluten dairy or sugar)I did not receive any relief from my itching. Mine starts around Oct. and lasts until spring. Ice is my only relief. I see my neurologist in January and I will definitely talk to him about this if I can hold out that long. I wonder if the gabapentin will be an option for me. I have tried so hard to clear my body of toxins taking more drugs doesn’t make me happy but there doesn’t seem to be many options for this.