# Do you have notalgia paresthetica? **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [November 12, 2015, 9:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-have-notalgia-paresthetica/737367 "2015-11-12T09:54:26Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![erysichthon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/d07c76/32.png) [@erysichthon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/erysichthon)\ **Post date:** [November 12, 2015, 9:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-have-notalgia-paresthetica/737367/1 "2015-11-12T09:54:26Z")
For the last 15-20 years, I’ve had an itchy spot on my back that drives me nuts. It’s on the left side, just below the scapula. This became so maddening that I bought a back scratcher to keep in my car (in addition to the back scratchers at home and at work). I recently learned, to my amazement, that this is an actual medical condition with a Latin name: [notalgia paresthetica](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Notalgia_paresthetica). The cause is believed to be nerves that make a right-angle turn through spinal muscles. Anybody else experienced this? If you haven’t, then lucky you. The Wikipedia article notes that most NP sufferers are [del]geezers[/del] “older persons,” so maybe you just don’t have it _yet_. ---
**Author:** ![Napier](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/ce73a5/32.png) [@Napier](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Napier)\ **Post date:** [November 12, 2015, 11:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-have-notalgia-paresthetica/737367/2 "2015-11-12T11:43:35Z")
Wow! I do indeed have exactly these symptoms, on the left, and have bought a telescoping back scratcher for the car too! AFAIK the cause may be what they’re describing. I’m 58. ---
**Author:** ![MoonMoon](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/moonmoon/32/2959_2.png) [@MoonMoon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MoonMoon)\ **Post date:** [November 12, 2015, 12:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-have-notalgia-paresthetica/737367/3 "2015-11-12T12:51:53Z")
Whoa. I might! I’ve had that for the last year or two - same spot. I’m in my mid-forties though; am I now an “older person”? 😉 ---
**Author:** ![74westy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/74westy/32/3950_2.png) [@74westy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/74westy)\ **Post date:** [November 12, 2015, 2:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-have-notalgia-paresthetica/737367/4 "2015-11-12T14:55:13Z")
That’s a symptom of [evil actions](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=771479). ---
**Author:** ![teela\_brown](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/d9b06d/32.png) [@teela\_brown](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/teela_brown)\ **Post date:** [November 12, 2015, 6:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-have-notalgia-paresthetica/737367/5 "2015-11-12T18:11:57Z")
Yes! I have a perpetually itchy spot on my right shoulder blade, located in that 4" square area that’s impossible to reach. It itches All. The. Time., yet there’s no rash or bumps or redness there. I keep a backscratcher on my nightstand so that I can reach for it multiple times per night and scratch. Drives me nuts sometimes. ---
**Author:** ![Finagle](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/b19c9b/32.png) [@Finagle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Finagle)\ **Post date:** [November 12, 2015, 6:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-have-notalgia-paresthetica/737367/6 "2015-11-12T18:25:16Z")
I’ve definitely been having troubles with nostalgia lately. Oh, and ever since I read the OP, my back has been itching too. Thanks, OP. ---
**Author:** ![Moriarty](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/moriarty/32/49_2.png) [@Moriarty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Moriarty)\ **Post date:** [November 12, 2015, 6:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-have-notalgia-paresthetica/737367/7 "2015-11-12T18:46:23Z")
I do indeed have what I call my “itchy spot”, which is on the left side of my back just below my scapula. It’s not always itchy, though; it comes and goes. And some times, it has also been a burning spot. I always figured it was some sort of pinched nerve. I never knew it had an actual name! Bless the Dope! ---
**Author:** ![OffByOne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/45deac/32.png) [@OffByOne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OffByOne)\ **Post date:** [November 12, 2015, 7:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-have-notalgia-paresthetica/737367/8 "2015-11-12T19:10:02Z")
> [@Moriarty](#): > > I do indeed have what I call my “itchy spot”, which is on the left side of my back just below my scapula. It’s not always itchy, though; it comes and goes. And some times, it has also been a burning spot. I always figured it was some sort of pinched nerve. > > I never knew it had an actual name! Bless the Dope! I always assumed it was because I could not reach that spot when I showered. And, of course, because that is the spot that I cannot reach, and Nature has a warped sense of humor. ---
**Author:** ![TruCelt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/trucelt/32/523_2.png) [@TruCelt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TruCelt)\ **Post date:** [November 12, 2015, 7:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-have-notalgia-paresthetica/737367/9 "2015-11-12T19:19:47Z")
I just cant believe this. It hasn’t bothered me in a long time, but it was horrible for years. One itchy spot just inside my left shoulder blade. The itch was deep in the dermis, not on the surface. What a surprise to have an answer after all these years! ---
**Author:** ![gigi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a587f6/32.png) [@gigi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gigi)\ **Post date:** [November 14, 2015, 6:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-have-notalgia-paresthetica/737367/10 "2015-11-14T06:54:46Z")
I do pine for the days when parentheses were used correctly, yes. ---
**Author:** ![JKellyMap](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jkellymap/32/15880_2.png) [@JKellyMap](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JKellyMap)\ **Post date:** [November 14, 2015, 11:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-have-notalgia-paresthetica/737367/11 "2015-11-14T11:35:25Z")
Yes!!! Exact same spot! It developed about 10 years ago, when I was about 35. It comes and goes – maybe three episodes a year, for a couple of weeks each time. Thank you for clearing up this mystery! ---
**Author:** ![JKellyMap](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jkellymap/32/15880_2.png) [@JKellyMap](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JKellyMap)\ **Post date:** [November 14, 2015, 11:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-have-notalgia-paresthetica/737367/12 "2015-11-14T11:38:33Z")
> [@gigi](#): > > I do pine for the days when parentheses were used correctly, yes. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![usedtobe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/ec9cab/32.png) [@usedtobe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/usedtobe)\ **Post date:** [November 14, 2015, 10:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-have-notalgia-paresthetica/737367/13 "2015-11-14T22:27:00Z")
I have a slightly different pathology, but it still produces an intense itch (kidney failure). FWIW: For the kidney patients, 300 mg Gabapentin ('script only in US) often works. I was prescribed the stuff on two occasions as a ‘Hail Mary’ move to avoid opiates for pain. It didn’t work for pain, but, Damn! it nails the itch. Talk to your MD - gabapentin is not likely to be abused nor diverted, so it should be easy to get a script on a ‘why not?’ basis. ---
**Author:** ![raventhief](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/raventhief/32/4_2.png) [@raventhief](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/raventhief)\ **Post date:** [November 14, 2015, 11:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-have-notalgia-paresthetica/737367/14 "2015-11-14T23:09:52Z")
I ahve that same perpetually itchy spot! Left side…in that spot I cannot reach! ---
**Author:** ![Arrendajo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e0b2c6/32.png) [@Arrendajo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Arrendajo)\ **Post date:** [November 14, 2015, 11:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-have-notalgia-paresthetica/737367/15 "2015-11-14T23:44:06Z")
Yep – right side of my ribcage where it is difficult to reach with either hand. It comes and goes, sometimes a really maddening itch, but it never breaks out in a rash or shows anything on the skin. It’s not very focused – it always seems like I almost but not quite scratch the spot that itches. ---
**Author:** ![beowulff](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beowulff/32/542_2.png) [@beowulff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/beowulff)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2020, 3:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-have-notalgia-paresthetica/737367/17 "2020-02-25T03:54:19Z")
> [@Arthor](#): > > where did you get [telescoping back scratcher](https://www.amazon.com/Backscratchers-Scratcher-Bearclaw-Telescoping-Adjustable/dp/B07Q2RZZL2) Spam makes me itchy. Reported. ---
**Author:** ![nearwildheaven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/90db22/32.png) [@nearwildheaven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nearwildheaven)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2020, 4:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-have-notalgia-paresthetica/737367/18 "2020-02-25T04:48:33Z")
Didn’t realize it was bumped by a spammer until I got to the bottom of the thread. Anyway, I seem to have a variation of this, although in my case, the base of my right scapular area is not itchy; it feels cold, but only sometimes. ---
**Author:** ![Beckdawrek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beckdawrek/32/3647_2.png) [@Beckdawrek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beckdawrek)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2020, 6:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-have-notalgia-paresthetica/737367/20 "2020-02-25T06:20:36Z")
Well, I have it now, thanks☺️ My Daddy had it. He was always asking someone scratch it for him. Hadn’t thought of that in years. ---
**Author:** ![Senegoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/senegoid/32/6606_2.png) [@Senegoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Senegoid)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2020, 8:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-have-notalgia-paresthetica/737367/21 "2020-02-25T08:05:26Z")
Obligatory old old old music for an old old old thread. [That Old Back Scratcher](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5YbiGU4auG4) by Allan Sherman, 1960-something. ---
**Author:** ![Napier](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/ce73a5/32.png) [@Napier](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Napier)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2020, 1:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-have-notalgia-paresthetica/737367/22 "2020-02-25T13:03:56Z")
Still have it. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-have-notalgia-paresthetica/737367.md?page=2)