Allergy
Although it is an inherited disease, eczema is primarily aggravated by contact with or intake of allergens.
It can also be influenced by other factors that affects the immune system such as stress or fatigue.
Atopic eczema consists of chronic inflammation; it often occurs in people with a history of allergy disorders such as asthma or hay fever. There is no certain cause of atopic dermatitis.
In dogs, atopic dermatitis can be caused by or aggravated by inhaled allergens, food allergens, and flea bites; however, in human, such relationships are not well established.
Food allergy
While not cause of atopic dermatitis, food allergy is often present in atopic children, and children with food allergy often present with skin dermatitis indistinguishable from atopic dermatitis.
New-onset atopic dermatitis patients at a later age or severe atopic dermatitis often warrant referral to an allergist for food allergy testing.
Many dermatologists and physicians test for food allergy in their office. The test is often done as a "pin prick" or "needle prick."
A drop of food extract is placed on the skin, and a small prick in the epidermis is performed. A "wheal" is produced with a positive test.
Common food allergen causing eczematous dermatitis include peanuts, tree nuts, shellfish, fish, milk, and egg.
While food allergy induced eczematous dermatitis might present independent of atopic dermatitis, some children with atopic dermatitis also have concurrent food allergies.
Biological
Although it is such a common disease, relatively little is understood about the underlying causes of atopic eczema. While AE is associated with allergic asthma and allergic rhinitis, the connection between the diseases has not been established.
Genomic research into the cause of multigenic diseases is still in its infancy: few genes have ever been identified that contribute to multigenic human disorders. but most have not been.
Associations with ATOD1, ATOD2, ATOD3, ATOD4, ATOD5 and ATOD6 have been identified.
In a publication in Nature Genetics from April 6, 2009, Young-Ae Lee of the Max Delbrück Center for Molecular Medicine in Berlin and her colleagues report a strong association between atopic dermatitis and a common genetic variant, a new locus on chromosome 11, potentially associated with the gene C11orf30.
Further Reading
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"Atopic dermatitis"
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