Key Points
• Source: Acta Dermato-Venereologica
• Conclusion: “Patients with AD [atopic dermatitis] are prevalent in all age groups in Finnish primary care. Patient numbers were also relatively high in groups other than childhood, indicating that age-related distribution in primary care may be shifting to older ages.”
• In the current study, Finish researchers mined a nationwide database to assess the number of AD patients and related primary-care consultations during 2018.
• Overall, 1% of general-practice consults were due to AD, with this presentation in all age groups. The main burden of AD may be shifting from kids to adults, per the results of this and other studies.
• “The results of the current study show that, concerning outpatient visits in the Finnish primary care, AD is not limited to children or younger patients, but is prevalent in all age groups although it decreases proportionally with age,” the authors wrote.
• Although there were no sex differences were observed, more female patients with AD were noted in all age groups except those aged less than a year old. The reason for this finding could be due to greater representation of the female sex in primary care.
• “There is only a limited amount of data regarding demographic characteristics of AD in the elderly population in primary care,” the authors wrote. “The current results showed a considerable number of patients with AD in older age groups, and since there have been indications of a shift of AD burden to older age, the current results are important in understanding the age-related distribution in primary care.”
• One major limitation of the current study is that the diagnosis of AD couldn’t be confirmed using patient records and was based only on the database.