G Pesce1, A Marcon1, A Carosso2, L Antonicelli3, L Cazzoletti1, M Ferrari4, A G Fois5, P Marchetti1, M Olivieri6, P Pirina5, G Pocetta7, R Tassinari8, G Verlato1, S Villani9, R de Marco1. 1. Unit of Epidemiology and Medical Statistics, Department of Public Health and Community Medicine, University of Verona, Verona, Italy. 2. Unit of Respiratory Medicine and Allergology, CPA-ASL TO-2, Turin, Italy. 3. Department of Internal Medicine, Immuno-Allergic and Respiratory Diseases, Ospedali Riuniti di Ancona, Ancona, Italy. 4. Section of Internal Medicine, University of Verona, Verona, Italy. 5. Institute of Respiratory Diseases, University of Sassari, Sassari, Italy. 6. Unit of Occupational Medicine, AO Istituti Ospedalieri di Verona, Verona, Italy. 7. Department of Experimental Medicine, University of Perugia, Perugia, Italy. 8. Department of Public Health and Pediatrics, University of Turin, Turin, Italy. 9. Department of Public Health, Experimental and Forensic Medicine, University of Pavia, Pavia, Italy.
Abstract
BACKGROUND: Studies on the prevalence of eczema and atopic dermatitis (AD), and on the factors associated with these diseases, have been mostly performed in children, whereas studies on adult populations are lacking. OBJECTIVES: To determine the prevalence of eczema and AD in the Italian adult population, and to investigate risk factors associated with the disease. METHODS: A postal screening questionnaire was administered to 18 357 randomly selected subjects aged 20-44 years in the Gene-Environment Interaction in Respiratory Diseases study, which involved seven centres distributed across northern, central and southern Italy. The questionnaire included items on the occurrence of doctor-diagnosed eczema, asthma and hay fever, socio-demographic characteristics and environmental exposures. RESULTS: In all, 10 464 (57.0%) subjects responded to the questionnaire. The prevalence of current eczema was 8.1% (95% CI: 7.6-8.7%), while the prevalence of eczema with asthma and/or hay fever (EAH), which was adopted as proxy of AD, was 3.4% (95% CI: 3.1-3.8%). About 60% of the subjects with current eczema reported the onset of the disease in adulthood. In multi-variable models, the prevalence of eczema was significantly associated with female sex, older age, living close to industrial plants, high levels of heavy traffic near home and living in central-southern Italy. CONCLUSIONS: Eczema and EAH are highly prevalent in Italian young adults, especially in women. Our results suggest that adult onset is not unusual, and that environmental factors may influence the occurrence of eczema and EAH.
BACKGROUND: Studies on the prevalence of eczema and atopic dermatitis (AD), and on the factors associated with these diseases, have been mostly performed in children, whereas studies on adult populations are lacking. OBJECTIVES: To determine the prevalence of eczema and AD in the Italian adult population, and to investigate risk factors associated with the disease. METHODS: A postal screening questionnaire was administered to 18 357 randomly selected subjects aged 20-44 years in the Gene-Environment Interaction in Respiratory Diseases study, which involved seven centres distributed across northern, central and southern Italy. The questionnaire included items on the occurrence of doctor-diagnosed eczema, asthma and hay fever, socio-demographic characteristics and environmental exposures. RESULTS: In all, 10 464 (57.0%) subjects responded to the questionnaire. The prevalence of current eczema was 8.1% (95% CI: 7.6-8.7%), while the prevalence of eczema with asthma and/or hay fever (EAH), which was adopted as proxy of AD, was 3.4% (95% CI: 3.1-3.8%). About 60% of the subjects with current eczema reported the onset of the disease in adulthood. In multi-variable models, the prevalence of eczema was significantly associated with female sex, older age, living close to industrial plants, high levels of heavy traffic near home and living in central-southern Italy. CONCLUSIONS:Eczema and EAH are highly prevalent in Italian young adults, especially in women. Our results suggest that adult onset is not unusual, and that environmental factors may influence the occurrence of eczema and EAH.
Authors: Jonathan I Silverberg; Paras P Vakharia; Rishi Chopra; Ryan Sacotte; Neha Patel; Supriya Immaneni; Takeisha White; Robert Kantor; Derek Y Hsu Journal: J Allergy Clin Immunol Pract Date: 2017-11-10
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Authors: Lucia Cazzoletti; Marcello Ferrari; Mario Olivieri; Giuseppe Verlato; Leonardo Antonicelli; Roberto Bono; Lucio Casali; Isa Cerveri; Pierpaolo Marchetti; Pietro Pirina; Andrea Rossi; Simona Villani; Roberto de Marco Journal: Allergy Asthma Clin Immunol Date: 2015-12-04 Impact factor: 3.406