Dermatophagia Simulating Callosities

Abstract

The skin is often the target for release of mental tension, be it mild or severe. Under normal circumstances, scratching is elicited by minor irregularities of the skin surface, but it may lead to excoriations and result in habit formation [Koblenzer, 1983] for which the term dermatotillomania is appropriate. We are describing a relatively mild instance of a psychosomatic disorder, self-mutilation, in a teen-aged boy habitually biting his skin. Case Report