Abstract
The global epidemiology of atopic dermatitis (AD) in the current decade (2009–2019) has not been extensively reported. Epidemiological studies play an important role in presenting the risk factors of AD, as detailed prevalence and incidence data could demonstrate the burden of disease in the population of adults, adolescents, and children in different geographical regions. Thus, the primary objective of this review was to assess and summarize the epidemiological studies of the prevalence and incidence of AD in different age groups, focusing on data from studies published for 2009 to 2019. After a thorough literature search, six countries were identified from African, Asian, and European regions respectively, who published studies on AD. In contrast, only two studies were identified from Australia and New Zealand, three countries from North America and two from South America published AD studies, respectively. The highest prevalence of AD from included studies was noted among Swedish children with 34%, while the lowest prevalence was in Tunisian children with 0.65%; studies reporting incidence data were far less numerous. A common trend in the prevalence of AD was that children would have a higher prevalence as compared to adolescents and adults. The severity and morbidity of the disease showed variance with age, sex, socioeconomic characteristics, geographical location, and ethnicity. Environmental factors played an important role as causative agents in AD. The risk factors that were proven to cause and induce AD were skin barrier impairments due to FLG mutation, changes in the environment, and diet. FLG mutation may impair the skin barrier function by disruption of pH and hydration maintenance of the skin. Lastly, there were only a few studies on the incidence of AD in the 21st century. Therefore, epidemiological studies on childhood and adulthood AD in different continents are still needed, especially on the incidence of AD during adulthood.
Highlights
Atopic dermatitis (AD), a condition which goes by the name ‘atopic eczema’, is a chronic, inflammatory, and eczematous skin disease
In addition to exploring the risk factors associated with this disease, the objective of our present paper was to summarize the reported prevalence and incidence of atopic dermatitis (AD) among adults, adolescents, and children in the world
Based on the results on our literature survey, the prevalence of AD was highest in younger children compared to older children, adolescent, and adults
Summary
Atopic dermatitis (AD), a condition which goes by the name ‘atopic eczema’, is a chronic, inflammatory, and eczematous skin disease. AD is commonly diagnosed in children but it may affect patients in their adult years. It has been reported that children diagnosed with AD may present with asthma and allergic rhinitis, which are the common comorbidities of AD in infancy and/or in early childhood. Reports on the incidence and prevalence of AD had mainly included surveys of the general population, or adult-specific and/or children-specific studies. 25% of children diagnosed with AD will continue to be affected by the disease in adulthood, either as a continuous illness presentation or by having a relapse of symptoms after some symptom-free years. The incidence and prevalence of AD among children changes across the different parts of the globe, based on a comprehensive report containing data corresponding to 12 years, namely Phase 1 (1992–1997) and Phase 3 (1999–2004) [53]
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