• H Murota and I Katayama.
• Department of Dermatology, Course of Integrated Medicine, Graduate School of Medicine, Osaka University, Suita, Japan.
• Eur J Pain. 2016 Jan 1; 20 (1): 47-50.

Background And ObjectivesItch is one of the major symptoms in dermatology clinics, and severely impairs the quality of life. Itch is frequently produced by environmental stimuli, especially heat or warmth. Changes of temperature on the skin surface and noxious heat stimuli augment and develop itch, respectively. Thermally provoked itch is sometimes intractable with existing treatments.Data Bases And Data TreatmentRecent researches, linking heat sensation and itch, were searched in MEDLINE literature database through PubMed.ResultsRecent studies of the transient receptor potential cation channel subfamily vanilloid type 1 (TRPV1), the calcitonin gene-related peptide (CGRP) and the vesicular glutamate transporter 2 (VGLUT2), which link noxious heat and itch, contribute to a much better understanding of the thermally evoked itch process. From a clinical perspective, a warm sensation is a major provocative factor for subjects with atopic dermatitis. The accumulation of artemin (also known as enovin or neublastin) in the dermis of lesional skin can possibly provide a pathological mechanism for warmth-provoked itch.ConclusionsThis mini-review describes recent results of both basic and clinical research related to thermally provoked itch.© 2015 The Authors. European Journal of Pain published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd on behalf of European Pain Federation - EFIC®.

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