Der Hautarzt; Zeitschrift für Dermatologie, Venerologie, und verwandte Gebiete
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Clinical Trial Controlled Clinical Trial
[Antipruritic therapy with the oral opioid receptor antagonist naltrexone. Open, non-placebo controlled administration in 133 patients].
The perception of pruritus is modified by endogenous and exogenous opioids via central opiate receptors and can be suppressed with opioid receptor antagonists. The aim of this investigation was to describe the efficacy and safety of naltrexone, an orally active opiate antagonist, in the treatment of severe, otherwise intractable pruritus of varying origins. ⋯ The oral opiate antagonists may well be an effective, well-tolerated therapy for intractable pruritus in many diseases.