[The relationship between psychogenic excoriation and psychiatric disorders: a comparative study].

OBJECTIVE

Psychogenic excoriation (PE), characterized by excessive scratching or picking of the skin, is not yet recognized as a symptom of a distinct DSM-IV disorder. It is a chronic disorder with a high rate of psychiatric comorbidity. The purpose of this study was to compare patients diagnosed with PE and another group of psychodermatosis patients in terms of comorbid psychiatric disorders.

METHOD

Thirty-one consecutive subjects were recruited from an outpatient dermatology clinic. The control group was composed of 31 patients with a dermatological disease other than PE. Subjects were interviewed using the Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-III-R, Beck Depression Inventory (BDI), Hamilton Anxiety Rating Scale (HARS) and the Yale-Brown Obsession and Compulsion Scale (YBOCS). Subjects also completed a semi-structured questionnaire for socio-demographic data and clinical features.

RESULTS

Current major depressive syndrome was the most common psychiatric disorder in the PE group. There was a statistically significant difference between the two groups in terms of current major depressive syndrome (PE group 58.1%, control group 6.5%, p<0.01). Some 45.2% of the PE group was diagnosed with obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD) while the proportion was only 3.7% in the control group. This difference was also statistically significant (p<0.01). The PE group scored significantly higher in the BDI, HARS and the YBOCS.

CONCLUSION

The results of this study point to a close relationship between PE and depression and OCD.