Psychotherapeutic Strategy and Neurotic Excoriations

This article sketches the planning of psychotherapy as a treatment for neurotic excoriations (NE). The program is developed on the basis of information collected in an investigation of 63 consecutive, first-time referrals of NE patients to a dermatology department, and the findings from a follow-up after 1 to 5 years. The offer of social advice and support, but not psychotherapy, was included in the investigation program. At the time of follow-up, NE had healed for 13 of the 63 patients. The information gathered indicates that a treatment model should be eclectic in form so as to allow for individual variances in, for example, age, intelligence level, and motivation for psychiatric intervention.