October was Eczema Awareness Month, and there’s new evidence suggesting that adult patients with eczema (aka atopic dermatitis, or AD) have an increased risk of contracting infectious diseases such as influenza, strep throat, and chickenpox. Patients with AD and another atopic illness may be at even higher risk for 2, 3, 4, or more infections per year compared with those affected by AD alone.
Thus recognizing AD in your adult patients could significantly impact your approach to patient care.
AD is a chronic, relapsing, pruritic condition that is often associated with allergic rhinitis and/or asthma. Infants and children are most often affected, with 95% of cases appearing by 5 years of age. Less commonly, the condition may persist into, or even arise in, adulthood.
Read more of VisualDx’s content about atopic dermatitis including varied disease presentations.
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