Chronic itch induced by thalamic deep brain stimulation: a case for a central itch centre

Central itch syndrome has been previously described in conditions such as stroke. The neurophysiology of central itch syndrome has been investigated in non-human primates but remains incompletely understood.

We report an observational study of a rare case of severe central itch following thalamic deep brain stimulation and postulate the location of the central itch centre in humans.

The patient was a 47-year-old female, with congenital spinal malformations, multiple previous corrective spinal surgeries and a 30-year history of refractory neuropathic pain in her back and inferior limbs. Following multidisciplinary pain assessment and recommendation, she was referred for spinal cord stimulation, but the procedure failed technically due to scarring related to her multiple previous spinal surgeries. She was therefore referred to our centre and underwent bilateral deep brain stimulation (DBS) of the ventral posterolateral nucleus of the thalamus for management of her chronic pain. Four weeks after switching on the stimulation, the patient reported significant improvement in her pain but developed a full body progressive itch which was then complicated with a rash. Common causes of skin eczema were ruled out by multiple formal dermatological evaluation. A trial of unilateral “off stimulation” was performed showing improvement of the itchy rash. Standard and normalized brain atlases were used to localize the active stimulating contact within the thalamus at a location we postulate as the central itch centre.

Precise stereotactic imaging points to the lateral portion of the ventral posterolateral and posteroinferior nuclei of the thalamus as critical in the neurophysiology of itch in humans.