Whar Does It Mean if Your Back Const Antly Itchesd

An itchy back is surprisingly common, and can cause significant discomfort. It might irritate you most at night and may even stop you sleeping. You might be wondering, why your back is so itchy in the first place, and how to treat it.

Dr Louise Wiseman explains 10 possible causes of an itchy back, and what to do about it. Many things that cause an itchy back can also cause generalised itching of the whole body or other very specific areas. Some causes can be easily dealt with, others may need medical attention.

1. Dry Skin

Mildly dry skin to full blown eczema can cause itching. Itching from simply dry skin is more common with increasing age as our skin gets naturally drier and many people find that once the heating goes on in the winter their skin dries out and itching worsens.

Dry skin symptoms

Generalised itching over your back. You may see reddened areas or bumpiness or the skin may still appear normal. You might have what we call 'excoriations' or scratches if you have itched repeatedly.

Dry skin treatment

Try some simple measures at home to ease it

• Do not use very hot water when washing – just warm – and don't stand in the shower or bathe for lengthy sessions as this can dry the skin.

• Use a gentle cleanser that does not irritate your skin. Look for alcohol free and fragrance free options and you may be better off with a soap substitute.

• Try applying a moisturiser to the skin whilst it is still damp – you may need help with this if possible for the hard to reach places. This will help to retain the moisture in the skin.

Keep your nails short and clean and in all cases try not to itch and try simply tapping the area to relieve it.

2. Allergies

This can be in response to something we have eaten or come into contact with and will usually resolve when we remove the triggering cause. Most likely you will have generalised itching over your whole body.

Allergy symptoms

You may see hives or an allergic red large flat rash (urticaria) if you look in the mirror at your back. You may not always see a rash.

Allergy treatment

Finding the cause and avoiding it is key – look at any medicines, herbal supplements, spicy food, shellfish or unusual foods you may have eaten. Sometimes exposure to the sunshine can trigger 'photosensitivity' with certain medicines and cause redness or a rash.

In the meantime, a regular antihistamine should greatly help the condition and seek immediate medical advice if you have any associated swelling or problems breathing.

Use aqueous calamine lotion, calamine lotion or eurax on affected areas to help calm the skin and stop itching. Take care to use sunblock if you are on a medication causing photosensitivity.

3. Contact dermatitis

We can react to what is placed directly on our skin causing a contact dermatitis or eczema type picture. This sets up a vicious cycle where dry inflamed skin itches and becomes further inflamed after itching. Skin can then get infected if our hands are not clean and infection gets in.

Contact dermatitis symptoms

Skin can have a red rash, dryness, scales, bumps and blisters and there may be an ooze or crusting and swelling if infection has occurred.

Contact dermatitis treatment

First look at what could be directly irritating your skin and then avoid if possible:

• Have you changed washing powder or fabric conditioner recently?

• Have you been in contact with new pets or animals?

• Have you been gardening where you could have had contact with plants on this area?

• Have you used different hair or skin products that could have come into contact with this area?

• Are you exposed to chemicals at work that could irritate?

• Does wool or certain synthetic fabric worsen the itching?

If removing the possible trigger does not sort it then you will need to treat the dermatitis or eczema carefully.

Wear loose cotton clothing over the area. Avoiding excess alcohol and caffeine can help. Using gentles cleansers and emollients (moisturisers) as for dry skin and then treating with a mild steroid cream can help. Do not use this for more than two weeks and if there is no improvement see your doctor who can examine your back easier than you can and may prescribe stronger treatment and lotions. If you think the skin has become infected see the doctor sooner as you may need topical or oral antibiotics.

4. Insect bites, stings, infection or infestation

We tend to know if we have been bitten causing a single bite by a mosquito, wasp or bee and can treat it at home (unless we have a severe allergy) with some antihistamine as a tablet or cream (e.g. antihistan).

Sometimes we can have a type of eczema where a fungal infection has come in and this can cause itching often in a small area. The doctor can recognise this from the round red rash it produces and prescribes a cream combining steroid and an anti-fungal agent – the diagnosis may be thrush or ringworm.

Less commonly, itching can be from infestation with scabies or from biting from 'bed bugs'.

Scabies is caused by tiny mites that lay eggs in the skin leaving silvery lines with a dot at one end. This then becomes a rash of small red spots. The itching is usually worse at night. A tell tale sign is often that there are scratches starting between the fingers. It would be unusual to only have this on your back. the pharmacist or doctor will give you a specific lotion to use that you repeat after a week and your close contacts and family will need to be treated.

Bed bugs are small insects that live in furnishings and the red rash they cause is intensely itchy. You must try not to scratch the area and will need antihistamine and steroid cream to calm it and you will have to seek advice of the local pest control service to eliminate it in your home.

5. Changes in a mole or a new mole

The back is a common place to have moles. We cannot see them easily ourselves and itching in a new or existing mole could sometimes be a sign of cancerous change and should be reported to your doctor. If you have lots of moles (particularly if they are on your back where you can't keep a check) it is a good idea to have an annual check on them.

6. Psychological reasons for itching

We can all find we itch when nervous or stressed. General anxiety, depression and obsessive compulsive disorder can all trigger increasing itching. Treating the underlying cause is key.

Peathegee Inc Getty Images

7. Neurological reasons for itching

If a nerve is compressed there can be itching as can conditions such as diabetes and multiple sclerosis.

Sometimes re-emergence of chicken pox as herpes zoster or shingles can cause a painful itchy rash on our back – usually isolated to one nerve area. You see a cluster of small blisters and it is important to seek medical treatment promptly as the doctor can prescribe antiviral medicine to reduce the chance of persisting pain in this area once the shingles has healed up.

8. Metabolic causes for itching

More rarely itching can be a sign of liver, kidney or thyroid problems. It can also occur with iron deficiency anaemia and in certain malignancies such as myeloma and lymphoma.

9. Hormonal causes for itching

Pregnancy can cause itching. This can simply be due to the tummy skin stretching.

More rarely (about 1 in 100 women) it can be more severe and part of a condition called intrahepatic cholestasis of pregnancy that needs medical attention.

Menopausal time can also be linked to itching as hormone levels change.

10.Unknown causes of itching

Sometimes we do not know the cause of itching and it can appear 'out of the blue' and often will pass as quickly as it came.

Itching most often is innocent, but if it persists, or is not getting better with home prevention and treatment then speak to your doctor. Most likely it is a simple, treatable reason for your itch but always be safe and seek help if it is not normal for you.

Last medically reviewed: 08-07-2020

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Whar Does It Mean if Your Back Const Antly Itchesd

Source: https://www.netdoctor.co.uk/ask-the-expert/skin-hair-nails/a3443/very-itchy-back-for-three-months/