Prenatal exposure to acetaminophen increases the risk of atopic dermatitis in children: A nationwide nested case-control study in Taiwan

Correlation of Disease Severity, Proinflammatory Cytokines, and Reduced Brain Gray Matter Volumes in Patients with Atopic Dermatitis

Background: Atopic dermatitis (AD) is a chronic inflammatory skin disease. However, few studies have investigated brain changes associated with chronic inflammation. We hypothesized that chronic inflammation might be related to brain structural alterations in patients with AD. Objectives: To investigate the association between disease severity (Eczema Area and Severity Index [EASI]), proinflammatory cytokines, and differences in brain gray matter (GM) volume in patients with AD. Methods: Nineteen patients with AD and 19 age- and sex-matched healthy subjects were enrolled. All participants underwent clinical assessment and brain magnetic resonance imaging. Voxel-based morphometry was performed to analyze GM volume differences. Results: Patients with AD exhibited significantly decreased GM volume in many brain regions, such as bilateral precentral gyrus, right frontal pole, and right middle temporal gyrus (P < 0.001), compared with healthy subjects. Notably, in patients with AD, the GM volume in right middle temporal gyrus was negatively associated with both EASI score and proinflammatory cytokines (sIL-2R [soluble interleukin 2 receptor] and TNF-α receptor-1), whereas the GM volume in left precentral gyrus was negatively associated with both EASI score and proinflammatory cytokines (sIL-2R and CRP). Conclusion: Patients with AD demonstrated significant brain GM volume reduction in many brain regions, which is related to disease severity and proinflammatory cytokines.

Early-life infections in association with development of atopic dermatitis in infancy and early childhood: A nationwide nested case-control study

BACKGROUND

Microbial dysbiosis has been implicated in the development of atopic dermatitis (AD). The risk of development of AD following early-life infections remains unclear.

OBJECTIVE

To investigate the impact of early-life infections on AD development.

METHODS

This population-based nested case-control study was conducted using the Taiwan's National Health Insurance Research Database. A total of 5,454 AD patients and 16,362 control subjects without AD were identified, for the period 1997 to 2013. Demographic characteristics, comorbidities, and maternal factors were compared. Adjusted odds ratio (aOR) was calculated to examine the associations between early-life infections and subsequent AD by conditional stepwise logistic regression analysis.

RESULTS

Mean age was 2.6±2.9 years in both groups. Overall infections (41.8% vs 28.9%) before the diagnosis of AD were more common in AD patients than in control subjects (p<.001). Infectious diseases (aOR, 1.40; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.29-1.51), skin infections (aOR, 1.55; 95% CI, 1.40-1.71) and systemic antibiotic exposure (aOR 1.67, 95% CI 1.55-1.79) before AD diagnosis were independently associated with AD development on multivariate analyses. These results were consistent across observation periods (0-1, 1-2, and >2 years after birth) and sensitivity analyses after redefining the index date as 3 or 6 months before the date of AD diagnosis. Other independent risk factors included asthma, allergic rhinitis, intussusception, and neonatal hyperbilirubinemia. No association with subsequent AD was found for maternal age at delivery, Cesarean delivery, or prenatal antibiotic exposure.

CONCLUSION

Infections in early life are associated with AD development in infancy and early childhood.