Abstract
BackgroundWhilst eczema is a common inflammatory skin condition, we lack contemporary estimates of disease incidence and prevalence across the lifespan.ObjectiveTo estimate the incidence and prevalence of eczema in children and adults in England and variation by sociodemographic factors (sex, socio‐economic status, ethnicity, and geography).MethodsWe used the Royal College of General Practitioners Research and Surveillance Centre primary care research database of 3.85 million children and adults registered with participating general practitioner practices between 2009 and 2018 inclusive. Eczema incidence was defined as the first‐ever diagnosis of eczema recorded in the primary care record, and eczema prevalence was defined as fulfilment of criteria for active eczema (two eczema records appearing in the primary care record within any one‐year period).ResultsEczema incidence was highest in infants younger than 1 year (15.0 per 100 person‐years), lowest in adults aged 40–49 (0.35 p/100 person‐years), and increased from middle age to a second smaller peak in people 80 years or older (0.79 p/100 person‐years). Eczema prevalence was highest in children aged 2 (16.5%) and lowest in adults aged 30–39 (2.8%). Eczema incidence was higher in male infants (<2) and male adults older than 70; for all other ages, incidence was higher in females. Eczema was more common in Asian and black ethnic groups than in people of white ethnicity. Higher socio‐economic status was associated with a greater incidence of eczema in infants younger than 2, but the reverse was seen for all other age groups. Both incidence and prevalence of eczema were greater in urban settings and in North‐West England.Conclusions and Clinical RelevanceEczema has a bimodal distribution across the lifespan. We observed differences in incidence and prevalence of eczema by ethnicity, geography, sex, and socio‐economic status, which varied in magnitude throughout life.
Highlights
Incidence rate Males eTable 2: Prevalence of atopic dermatitis (AD), by age category and sex in (A) children (n=570,536) and (B) adults (n=2,168,805)
Model adjusted for age category, sex, ethnicity, index of multiple deprivation, and rural/urban classification
1.00 (ref) 1.31 (1.27, 1.35) 1.35 (1.33, 1.37) 1.09 (1.07, 1.12) 1.17 (1.14, 1.20) 1.34 (1.31, 1.37)
Summary
Authors: Simon de Lusignan, Helen Alexander, Conor Broderick, John Dennis, Andrew McGovern, Claire Feeney, Carsten Flohr eFlowchart 1: Flowchart for construction of study population eFigure 1: Incidence rates of AD by calendar year, 2009-2018 in (A) children (n=913,606) and (B) adults (n=3,149,160). B) Adults eTable 1: The incidence of AD per 100-person years, by age and sex in (A) children (n=913,606) and (B) adults (n=3,149,160)
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
