Atopic dermatitis (AD), also known as eczema, is the most common skin condition in children, affecting 30% of Irish babies in the first 2 years of life. AD has a significant impact on quality of life (QOL) for infants and their parents. The main burdensome symptoms are itch and sleep disruption (Image 1). AD is associated with other atopic conditions such as food allergy, asthma, and allergic rhinitis. These associations often lead to babies with AD being treated with ineffective and inappropriate treatments, such as dietary restriction, which have no role in AD. AD is also associated with neuropsychiatric diseases such as anxiety, depression, and attentiondeficit hyperactivity disorder. There is growing evidence that developing eczema in early life might increase the risk of autism. Immunologically, there may be a window of opportunity to intervene in early life to prevent progression to more chronic and severe AD. For all these reasons, effective is the treatment of eczema in babies is extremely important.
Cause of AD
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