Topic: Acute itch

Acute itch has a clear beneficial purpose, directing our attention and physical response to specific areas of the skin to remove potentially harmful substances and parasites through scratching. However, millions suffer from persistent itch, where excessive scratching instead leads to skin injuries and sleep deprivation. Itch-inducing substances are detected by primary afferents in the skin, which relay the information to the dorsal horn of the spinal cord for further processing. Subsequently, ascending pathways transmit this information to the brain making us aware of the itch. Spinal glyciner