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Background: The nature of itch sensation varies depending upon the patient and the disease. However, few studies have focused on verbal expressions describing itch of atopic dermatitis (AD) in quality. Objectives: To investigate itch quality in patients with AD compared with that of urticaria. Methods: We conducted an online questionnaire survey describing itch experiences in June 2021. Participants were Japanese patients who had visited hospitals for their consultations and treatments of AD or urticaria in the last 6 months, and 295 and 290 responses, respectively, to questions using 12 terms describing itch quality were analyzed. Results: The most suitable expression describing intense itch that patients could not help scratching differed between the diseases, where most AD patients selected "muzumuzu" (a mimetic word for creepy-crawly itch) (27%) or "painful itch" (20%), and most urticaria patients selected "muzumuzu" (24%) or "itch like mosquito bites" (22%). The most suitable expressions describing itch that would make patients happiest if improved was "painful itch" (27%) in AD patients, significantly higher than urticaria patients (19%). More AD patients (55%) responded that they sometimes felt itch even after the skin symptoms had subsided than urticaria patients (41%). The most suitable expression of remnant itch selected was "muzumuzu" for AD (58/161 patients, 36%) and urticaria (29/120 patients, 24%). Conclusion: The quality of itch sensations can be classified not only between diseases but also during the clinical course of each disease. Significant expressions that patients with AD use to describe itch sensations could promote more appropriate treatment for itch. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Data on the problems physicians face when providing care for atopic dermatitis (AD) is limited. To understand the current status of AD management in Japan and identify the difficulties physicians are having and their support requirements, a cross-sectional online survey was conducted using the AD task force of the Japanese Society for Cutaneous Immunology and Allergy. Society members were sent an online questionnaire on demographic information, daily clinical practice, and perceptions of AD management. Using responses to 17 items listed as barriers to the treatment of atopic dermatitis (Question 12) and questions about the treatment difficulty of those items, 284 respondents were divided into three groups using unstratified cluster analysis. These three groups were classified as highdifficulty, medium-difficulty, and low-difficulty groups, and the relationship between physicians' cognition and daily practice was examined for each group. There were no significant differences in affiliations or specializations among the three clusters. The low-difficulty group had a significantly higher proportion of participants believing that it was possible to achieve long-term remission, satisfaction, and motivation in AD management while carrying out precise assessments of skin lesions as part of their daily practice. Some physicians experience problems in their practice. This results indicate that AD management can be improved if satisfaction and motivation can be increased by providing appropriate support. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article offers information on a case of dermatomyositis positive for melanoma differentiation antigen 5 (MDA5) antibody, focusing on the monitoring of complex antibody titer to exclude interstitial pneumonia.