CHARACTERISTICS OF PRURITUS AND SOME NEUROPEPTIDES IN PSORIASIS ASSOCIATED WITH MENTAL DISORDERS

Background. Pruritus is one of the most common symptoms accompanying psoriasis. Patients with pruritus report decreased quality of life, depression, anxiety, and body dysmorphic concerns, as well as reduced effectiveness of treatment. Objective. To study the intensity of skin pruritus and the level of neuropeptides in the blood serum in patients with psoriasis associated with mental disorders. Material and methods. The main methods of examination of 110 patients with psoriasis were clinical and anamnestic method as well as clinical laboratory and clinical psychopathological ones. Results. In patients with a combined variant of psoriasis and mental disorders, a significantly higher incidence of skin pruritus (p <0.001), pain (p <0.01), elevated serum levels of substance P (p˂0.001) was established; significantly more often scratching increased pruritus (p<0.05), pruritus led to depression (p<0.01), pruritus was prolonged (p<0.05) with a significant decrease in quality of life (p<0.05), mood swings were characterized as “severe"(p<0.05) and "unbearable" (p<0.001). Conclusion. Pruritus is one of the most common and bothersome symptoms of psoriasis and is often associated with psychosomatic and psychiatric comorbidities, as well as elevated blood serum levels of certain neuropeptides. This fact may indicate the role of the latter in the pathogenesis of this combined pathology. Considering the possibility of therapeutic potential on the neuropeptides production level, the obtained data on their role in the pathogenesis of psoriasis and its comorbid pathology will allow us to develop a personalized approach to therapy, taking into account the severity of the disease and concomitant pathology.