Burning, prickly, itchy skin

[tuckerace]

My husband age 59 has been experiencing burning, prickly itchy skin at random times but mostly during the evening.  He has the sensation of pins and needles pricking his skin from the inside out.  This mostly occurs on his arms or legs or back, but not concurrently. First it was his legs then it moved to his back and currently the problem is on his arms. The sensation will be symetrical, i.e. both arms. The prickling turns into severe itching with sensations of pin pricking pain. Once the itching starts it is very hard to control.  He has used ice, benedryl, anti itch creams and Zyrtec. His allergy tests by blood were negative. Skin can become dry and rough although no visable rash.

[Rainy1959]

I have had burning prickly skin for the past 10 years. It seems like it gets worse in the Fall as the weather starts changing and I live in a dry cold climate. But as I have gotten older now 54 years old the burning prickly itchy skin has gotten worse. The itching is mostly on arms, legs, back and tongue. I have tried Vitamin B6, all creams with steriods, antihistamines nothing works. Had problems with ALT and AST levels being high but they are now back to normal and problems still does not go away. Like others before I can hardly stand to wear clothes and scalp is so sore at times hard to lay head on pillow. Allergist did show 13.5 to 15 level on Tryptase level but antihistamines don't help.

[Azimdar]

Whenever i do some work,but body heats up, and i feel prickly itchiness on my head, chest and back, seems as if needles are prickling.. Only thing i could figure out was that it might be due to lack of sweat coming out of my body as i live in a cold place and here body doesn't sweat that much, moreover my skin i s very sensitive if i scratch my body the skin gets blood red. Blood reports show every thing normal. No idea what it might be. Need help if anyone has the same problem!!!!!!

[Jaxlimbo]

Im 21 an electrician (crawl through dirty rooves with insulation) and have had this condition for the last 4 odd months. The first night i remember it was whilst laying down in bed watching movies, its been a hot summer the whole time ive had it, quite humid too. Always occurs at night time, not necessarily because its hot but quite often it is. Though i am always itchy from insulation this is a different itch as its in the same spot (on my chest below neck). Going to try this b12 vitamins first, no drinking caffeine and trying some moisturiser on then let you know on my findings.

[Adviceking]

My wife struggled with these symptoms as well! From grabbing cold jars and tins in the fridge...it disrupted our sleep like you wouldn't believe. We tried everything under the sun until a colleague told me about a day cream by mo skincare, I bought her a tester tub and wow it worked. It's a cream made for eczema, dry and irritated skin that works wonders, try it!

[lisa271170]

The last year I have been having burning itchy skin, mainly my hands and feet. When it starts its hard to stop. White lumps appear the only relief I have is ice. I  used somany different creams but to no avail. I've had blood test done and found that I have B12 difitiontsie(sorry for spelling). I have type 2 diabetes and kidney disease.  My doctor is at a loss please help.

[lilaczen]

Hi, just thought I'd share. When I moved to a cold new climate I started developing this prickly, burning itch all over my back and butt. My thighs and elbows too. At first I thought it was an allergic reaction to the laundry detergent or fabric softener I was using, but later on it just turned out to be severely dry and irritated skin from the cold dry air and hot showers. I know this won't apply to many out there but for some of you who live in dry places, use topical or oral medicine that dry out or irritate the skin, have a history of dry skin, etc. You might try using a good moisturizer. Different people respond to different types of moisturizer so don't assume there is a "best". You don't get immediate and total elimination of it, but it helps substantially within the first application (possible longer if you have been suffering for a longer time) and gradually reduces it to be an occasional nuisance rather than an ongoing discomfort.

If you have a visible skin disease, it would probably be a better idea to test it out in small patches first to make sure there's no reaction.

I totally forgot about this until today because I caught a viral infection which gave me red splotches all over and I've been using calamine lotion for it. It wasn't itchy at first but as the days went by I developed this burning prickling itch. Which is when I remembered about dry skin feeling like this. The irony is that many topicals for itching skin can actually dry out skin more, making the prickling worse.