Development of the Pruritus-Associated Stress Scale: A Cross-Sectional Pilot Study

Svenja Royeck¹Johanna S. Papathanassiou¹Angelika Weigel²Nell Kindt²Bernd Loewe²Christian Mess³Claudia Zeidler¹Felix Witte¹Konstantin Agelopoulos¹Henning Wiegmann¹Stefan W. Schneider³Sonja Staender^1*

• ¹Pruritus Medicine Section, Department of Dermatology and Center for Chronic Pruritus (KCP), University Hospital Münster, Münster, Germany, Münster, Germany
• ²Department of Psychosomatic Medicine and Psychotherapy, University Medical Centre Hamburg-Eppendorf, Hamburg, Germany, Hamburg, Germany
• ³Department of Dermatology and Venereology, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf (UKE), Hamburg, Germany, Hamburg, Germany

Background: A significant relationship exists between perceived stress and the exacerbation and perpetuation of chronic pruritic dermatoses. Despite this, there is a notable absence of validated tools to specifically measure pruritus-associated stress. Objective: To develop and pilot the Pruritus-Associated Stress Scale (PASS), a patient-reported outcome measure (PROM) for assessing pruritus-associated stress. Patients and Methods: Patients with chronic prurigo (CPG), atopic dermatitis (AD), and chronic pruritus on non-lesional skin (CPNL) were recruited at a German university centre. They were interviewed on pruritus-associated stress, and perceived stress using the PSS-10 and PSQ-30 questionnaires, to compile the first PASS version in accordance with the guidelines for PROM development. Subsequently, a second patient cohort was interviewed to refine the items of the PASS instrument based on impact analysis, interitem and item-total correlation, and internal consistency reliability. Results: Of 55 patients (15 with AD, 20 with CPG, and 20 with CPNL; 61.8% female; mean age 61.0 ± 15.4 years), who participated in the item selection phase, 94.5% reported pruritus-associated stress in the previous two weeks. The preliminary PASS demonstrated excellent internal consistency (Cronbach’s alpha = 0.91). The twelve items that showed strong impact scores addressed nervousness, therapeutic strategies for managing pruritus-associated stress, fatigue, and urges to scratch more frequently or intensely due to pruritus. Conclusions: This pilot study yielded a preliminary PASS, identified poorly performing items, and collected information for further refinement. As a next step, retaining the full item pool, an exploratory factor analysis will be conducted in a larger sample.