Itch and Mental Distress: A Cross-Sectional Study among Late Adolescents

Itch is known to be associated with psychological factors in adults, but has not been explored among adolescents. A cross-sectional, questionnaire-based population study involving adolescents born mostly in 1986 was carried out in 2004. A total of 4744 individuals were invited and the participation rate was 80%. The Hopkins Symptom Checklist-10 was used to measure mental distress. The prevalence of itch was 8.8%. Itch was associated with mental distress, gender, socio-demographic factors, asthma, rhinoconjunctivitis and eczema. In a logistic regression model adjusting for possible confounders (including eczema), an association between itch and mental distress was found (odds ratio 3.1). In a subgroup analysis of those without eczema, the association was stronger. When the severity of itch increased, in both genders mental distress also increased. Mental distress and eczema are the variables in the study that contributes most to the distribution of itch at population level among adolescents in Oslo, Norway.