Improving the quality of atopic dermatitis epidemiological research in the United States- A systematic review of disease definitions and related content in national surveys

Authors

Sarah L. Becker, Department of Dermatology, Oregon Health and Science University, Portland, OR.
Gina N. Bash, Department of Dermatology, Oregon Health and Science University, Portland, OR.
Wendy Smith Begolka, National Eczema Association, Novato, CA. Electronic address: wendy@nationaleczema.org.
Tenesha Wallace-Hood, Department of Dermatology, Oregon Health and Science University, Portland, OR.
Junko Takeshita, Department of Dermatology; Department of Biostatistics, Epidemiology and Informatics; Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA.
Aaron M. Drucker, Division of Dermatology, Department of Medicine, University of Toronto and Women's College Hospital, Toronto, Ontario, CA.
Jonathan Silverberg, Department of Dermatology, The George Washington University School of Medicine and Health Sciences, Washington, DC.
Lawrence F. Eichenfield, Departments of Dermatology and Pediatrics, University of California San Diego School of Medicine, La Jolla, CA.
Katrina Abuabara, Department of Dermatology, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, CA.
Bryan Dosono, National Eczema Association, Novato, CA.
Andrew Hamilton, Department of Health Science Education, Oregon Health and Science University, Portland, OR.
Robyn Okereke, Department of Dermatology, Oregon Health and Science University, Portland, OR.
Eric Simpson, Department of Dermatology, Oregon Health and Science University, Portland, OR.

Document Type

Journal Article

Publication Date

8-13-2025

Journal

The Journal of investigative dermatology

DOI

10.1016/j.jid.2025.07.025

Keywords

atopic dermatitis; disease burden; population survey; systematic review

Abstract

Epidemiologic study of atopic dermatitis has been critical to improve our understanding of disease burden and to identify numerous atopic and non-atopic comorbidities. Despite widespread use, atopic dermatitis case definitions and related content in population-based surveys have not been comprehensively evaluated. To characterize the state of population-based health-related surveys in the United States that include atopic dermatitis or eczema, we conducted a systematic review searching Ovid MEDLINE for population-based surveys to study atopic dermatitis in the United States from database inception through March 26, 2025. Of 916 articles screened, 24 articles were included for analysis which included 11 independent surveys. Most surveys relied on self-report of physician diagnosis of atopic dermatitis or the International Study of Asthma and Allergies in Childhood (ISAAC) criteria, including a modified version of the ISAAC criteria which has not been validated. National surveys yielded the largest samples and were typically repeated annually, but some national surveys did not include questions on atopic dermatitis in recent years. National surveys do not use standardized definitions to identify atopic dermatitis and do not adequately capture key aspects of atopic dermatitis burden. Future population-based surveys should be designed to fill these important gaps.

APA Citation

Becker, Sarah L.; Bash, Gina N.; Begolka, Wendy Smith; Wallace-Hood, Tenesha; Takeshita, Junko; Drucker, Aaron M.; Silverberg, Jonathan; Eichenfield, Lawrence F.; Abuabara, Katrina; Dosono, Bryan; Hamilton, Andrew; Okereke, Robyn; and Simpson, Eric, "Improving the quality of atopic dermatitis epidemiological research in the United States- A systematic review of disease definitions and related content in national surveys" (2025). GW Authored Works. Paper 7767.
https://hsrc.himmelfarb.gwu.edu/gwhpubs/7767

Department

Dermatology