Dietary restrictions in the treatment of adult patients with eczema.

Improvement was seen in the dermatitis of 262 of 675 patients who followed a restrictive diet for approximately 1 month. Patients included in the study were sensitive to metal salts, balsams or classical food allergens or reacted to oral challenge with food additives. Also included were patients who did not react to diagnostic tests but who experienced improvement of their dermatitis while maintaining an elimination diet. A follow-up study was carried out 1-3 years after diet treatment was instituted. Each of the 262 patients was asked to complete a questionnaire to describe the long-term course of the dermatitis. 206 responded to the questionnaire, and for 144 of them (70%; 95% confidence limits 64-76%), there was long-term improvement of the dermatitis. Long-term improvement was more common among atopic patients than among non-atopics. Symptoms of contact urticaria were more common among patients with hand eczema than those with other types of eczema.