Background:

Urticaria is characterised by the presence of pruritic erythematous maculopapular lesions, associated or not with angioedema, and chronic urticaria is estimated to affect up to 1% of the population at some time in life. Chronic spontaneous urticaria (CSU), due to its clinical features may significantly affect the performance of daily activities and the quality of sleep. Some studies suggest that emotional disorders may be an important triggering factor in CSU.

Objectives:

This study aimed to explore the association of chronic spontaneous urticaria with psychiatric disorders by assessing the consumption of psychotropic drugs by patients with CSU.

Methods:

This was a retrospective study of adult patients evaluated in a first appointment in the Allergy and Immunology Department over one year, comparing data from a study group with CSU with a control group including patients evaluated over the same period for respiratory disease, matched with the study group in gender and age group. The use of psycho drugs by the patient was obtained from the clinical history and through the application of Electronic Medical Prescription. Statistical analysis was performed in SPSS version 22, and for comparison of the groups, the X2 test with 95% confidence interval was used. Results: Sixty patients were included in the CSU study group and 120 patients in the control group. Overall, there was no statistically significant difference (p=0.054) in the consumption of psychoactive drugs between the groups assessed. However, the study group tended to have a higher consumption of anxiolytics and sedatives. When we evaluate by pharmacological class, patients in the study group showed a greater tendency to consume more than one psychoactive drugs (p= 0.017), regardless of the drug involved.

Conclusions:

Patients with CSU are more likely to use more than one psychotropic drug, regardless of the pharmacological group. Psychological evaluation may be important in these patients’ diagnostic and therapeutic approaches.

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