Atopic dermatitis and skin diseaseIs eczema really on the increase worldwide?
Section snippets
ISAAC study and centers
The ISAAC collaborative research initiative comprised 3 phases. In Phase One 257,800 children aged 6 to 7 years in 90 centers and 463,801 children aged 13 to 14 years in 155 centers from 56 countries around the world were surveyed by using standardized questionnaires to determine the prevalence of eczema, asthma, and allergic rhinoconjunctivitis symptoms, the results of which are reported elsewhere.3, 21, 22, 23 Phase 2 involved more detailed objective exploration of possible causative factors
Raw data
Overall, Phase Three was completed with a mean of 7 years after Phase One. Mean response rates at centers were 85% for children 6 to 7 years old and 91% for children 13 to 14 years old (range, 64% to 100%). Table E1, Table E2 in the Online Repository (at www.jacionline.org) show the actual prevalence data for ISAAC Phase One and Three for the 13- to 14-year-old and 6- to 7-year-old age groups, respectively. Table E1, Table E2 also show mean changes in prevalence per year for eczema symptoms in
Main findings
This study has shown that for children 13 to 14 years old, symptoms of eczema in the last year have leveled off or decreased in some countries with formerly very high prevalences, such as the United Kingdom and New Zealand,3 providing some reassurance that an allergic disease epidemic is not increasing inexorably throughout the world. A maximum prevalence plateau of around 20% suggests that there might be a finite number of persons susceptible to developing eczema in any population, rather than
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Study collaborators are listed in full in Appendix E1 in the Online Repository at www.jacionline.org.
Disclosure of potential conflict of interest: The authors have declared that they have no conflict of interest.