Atopic Dermatitis in Children

Atopic dermatitis (AD) is a chronic-relapsing inflammatory skin disease that affects worldwide from 0.2% to 36% of the paediatric population. It is often associated with other atopic diseases such as rhinoconjunctivitis, asthma, and food allergy. The pathogenesis of the disease involves a combination of genetic factors, environmental influences, epidermal barrier dysfunctions, and immune dysregulation. Clinical manifestations are characterized by a typical age-related distribution, with pruritus as a main symptom. Infants usually present with acute exudative lesions localized on the cheeks, trunk, and limbs, that evolve during childhood and adolescence to chronic lichenified lesions that predominate on the flexural sites. This chapter aims to provide an overview of the epidemiology, pathogenesis, clinical features, diagnosis, complications, and social and economic impact of the disease, with a focus also on the current available treatments including behavioural, topical, and systemic therapies, with particular attention on biological drugs that recently improved greatly the prognosis of atopic dermatitis.