Natural history and risk factors of atopic dermatitis in children

Atopic dermatitis (AD) is one of the most common inflammatory allergic diseases with pruritic skin lesions particularly in infancy. It is considered to be the first step of atopic march and has variable disease courses. Many children with AD may resolve their AD symptoms with increasing age and may develop respiratory allergies such as asthma and rhinoconjunctivitis at certain ages. Natural course of AD has been supported by many cross-sectional and longitudinal studies in many countries. In general, atopic dermatitis tends to be more severe and persistent in young children, particularly if they have some risk factors including genetic factors. It appears that approximately 40%-70% of childhood AD will get resolved when they reach the age of 6-7 years. However, it is also observed that over half of the children with AD developed respiratory allergy during late childhood.