Recent research, published in the Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology, provides evidence that children suffering from atopic dermatitis may also have an increased risk for allergic contact dermatitis.
The study involved 912 children with and without atopic dermatitis, where 615 of the children had atopic dermatitis and 297 did not have atopic dermatitis. These children underwent patch testing between 2018 and 2022. The analysis has showed that children with atopic dermatitis were more likely to have seen more providers before they underwent patch testing.
Dr. Dustin Portela, an osteopathic physician specializing in dermatology who was not involved in the study, comments on the results of the study: “This study reveals that allergic contact dermatitis (ACD) may be under-diagnosed in our patients with AD [atopic dermatitis]. Although AD tends to make its first appearance at younger ages than ACD, these patients are more likely to develop contact allergies due to their compromised skin barrier and activated immune system. If we can more frequently identify which AD patients have concomitant ACD we can help those patients avoid their allergens and improve their disease symptoms more effectively. This should allow us to decrease those children’s exposure to topical corticosteroids.”