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Measuring the prevalence of chronic itch in the general population: Development and validation of a questionnaire

A German questionnaire-based survey to evaluate the prevalence and characteristics of chronic itch was conducted. The questionnaire was administered to 200 subjects in the general population and 100 patients attending an itch clinic. Of these, 115 and 84, respectively, responded. Their mean ages were 63.4 and 64.2 years, respectively. The lifetime prevalence of itch was 22.6% and 100%, respectively, the mean duration of itch was 93.6 and 81.5 months, respectively, and the average strength of the itch measured by a 0-10 visual analog scale was 5.3 and 7, respectively (P < 0.01). The results indicated that itch is prevalent in the general population and this questionnaire should be a useful tool ...