23. Under My Skin

House and the team take on the case of a ballerina whose lungs collapse in the middle of a performance. When the treatment causes her skin to fall off, the dancer faces not only the prospect of never dancing again but also of dying an agonizing death. Meanwhile, House continues to suffer from a severe lack of sleep and is still haunted by Amber. While enlisting Wilson's help to diagnose himself, he is willing to do the unthinkable to make his visions stop.

Plot summary and ending

Spoilers ahead. Coverage follows the scope labeled below.

Complete story — includes the ending

House and the team are given the challenging case of a ballerina (Jamie Tisdale) whose lungs collapse during a rehearsal. After first facing the prospect of never dancing again, the ballerina's future seems even more grim when the treatment causes her skin to fall off. House must solve this daunting puzzle while going to desperate measures to cure his hallucination; he continues to suffer from a severe lack of sleep and is still haunted by Amber. While enlisting Wilson's help to diagnose himself, he is willing to do the unthinkable to make his visions stop. Final diagnosis: Gonorrhea (Penelope) and Vicodin addiction (House)

Sources and content license

Source and revision history · Adapted from Wikipedia contributors, House season 5. HTML formatting and reference markers removed. · Content license