My son complains of an itchy face - but there is no rash

I often find my son rubbing/wiping, not really scratching, his face. He has a pattern of sorts, it starts with a nose wipe then a swipe across the forehead and then the chin - he sometimes adds a raised shoulder into the mix as well.  He claims that his face is itchy but he doesn't have any rash or indication of something that would cause an itch.  It makes me fear that there is something more, he has been through some big changes lately: a large move to another city, preschool, new house, misses his favourite aunt etc.

The only family history I can think of that would be even remotely similar is my uncle's terets that manifests in mild twitches and winks. Is this sort of repetitive behaviour symptomatic of anything else?  I hesitate to mention any of my initial thoughts for fear of influencing any of yours ... any input or further questions would be appreciated.  

Last note: he does have fairly dry skin on other parts of his body but has never exhibited dry skin on his facial area.

[wonderme]

How old is he?  It's easy to jump to the most ominous causes when we worry about our kids...I know I'm guilty of it.

It may be all the changes he is going through and he might feel like it gives him some kind of control.  I would maybe get him some dry skin lotion and tell him that worked great for you (or dad, or Uncle Bill or Grandma Sue) when you had the same thing.  Don't make a big deal about it...just 2-3 times a day tell him it's time to put the cream on.  If he really has dry, itchy skin it will help...if he doesn't, it won't hurt.  And if it turns out to be a "habit" then by addressing it and NOT making a big deal out of it might be enough for him to break it in 10 days or 2 weeks.

If he still complains after a couple of days...maybe he needs a dermatologist to take a look to make sure there really isn't anything there.  If he says it feels better, then go the course, but start to drop to 2 times a day, 1 time a day to none...if he doesn't complain, it may just be a "habit"...if it starts to get itchy when you lessen the applications then maybe he is itchy.

This is what I would do...but certainly you may want to check with his ped.

Good luck!

[pricey512]

I know that this post is quite old, but my son does the exact same thing as yours did, wiping his face as you describe and when I ask why, he says it's itchy, but no rash of any sort.  
I'm curious what worked for you or any information you have.
thanks!