Regarding the patient with delusional parasitosis (“Bugged: What’s causing the itching?” September 2007) by Cedric W. Spak, MD, MPH: The CDC is currently looking into a condition called Morgellon’s disease (www.cdc.gov/unexplaineddermopathy. Accessed October 8, 2007), and there is an article in the literature (Am J Clin Dermatol 2006;7:1-5; available at: www.morgellons.com. Accessed October 8, 2007). I am convinced that one of my patients has Morgellon’s disease. Previously self-employed and financially secure, he now is disabled with the rash and other associated symptoms of attention-deficit disorder and depression. He has already been labeled by specialists as having a nonorganic skin problem. It is unfortunate when medical providers insist on saying something does not exist simply because we do not have the knowledge to diagnose and treat it yet. Before something is proven to be scientific or evidence-based, it inevitably starts off as an anecdote, followed by many more anecdotes, and finally enough attention and data to acknowledge what some patients have “known all along.” I encourage all providers to access the Morgellon’s Research Foundation Web site (www.morgellons.org) to help in the accumulation of data on this debilitating problem.
