A chronic inflammatory eruption of the skin, usually characterized by the formation of small whitish papules (sold, circumscribed elevations of the skin) accompanied by severe itching. The papules, which are deeply seated, are most prominent on the extensor surfaces of the limbs.

The eruptions characteristically begin early in life. There are two main forms: prurigo mitis, which is comparatively mild, and prurigo agria, which is severe. The condition may be permanent or it may come and go. In young children the nonpermanent form may be associated with problems of teething or with eczema.

Summer prurigo is another name for hydroa vacciniforme, a skin disease usually affecting adolescent boys and young men; it appears in the summer on exposed parts of the body probably as a reaction to insect bites. It is characterized by the formation of ulcers (which may become encrusted) and vesicles. Following the onset of puberty, this disease gradually disappears.

Pru*ri"go (?), n. [L., an itching, the itch, fr. prurire to itch.] Med.

A papular disease of the skin, of which intense itching is the chief symptom, the eruption scarcely differing from the healthy cuticle in color.

 

© Webster 1913.

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