Eczema Patients at Higher Risk for Comorbidities, Study Finds

Recent analysis of data from the NIH’s All of Us Research Program reveals significant associations between atopic dermatitis (AD) and other health conditions, underscoring the multifaceted burdens faced by AD patients.

The All of Us Research Program, which collected health data from over 800,000 individuals in the United States, included more than 10,000 participants with AD, according to the National Eczema Association (NEA), who published highlights of the data analysis in a recent press release. The large-scale database provides researchers with a diverse and representative sample, facilitating the exploration of new health connections. 

Insights from the 'All Of Us' Database 

Three recent studies utilizing All of Us data showed that those with AD are over four times more likely to develop contact dermatitis and have twice as likely to have hypertension and hyperlipidemia compared to those without AD. Those findings, according to the press release, go some way toward illuminating unclear relationships between AD and these conditions. Researchers suggested that systemic inflammation and sleep disturbances associated with AD may contribute to the development of these conditions.

Additionally, the analyses showed that AD patients were found to have a twofold increase in the risk for inflammatory bowel disease, including Crohn's disease and ulcerative colitis. Understanding these associations, the researchers noted, helps in development of holistic treatment approaches, potentially improving patient outcomes. 

“One of the most exciting ways that databases like these can be used is to find out if different health conditions are related to each other,” said Allison Loiselle, PhD, Senior Manager of Data Science and Research at the NEA, in a press release. “For example, they can see which conditions seem to occur more frequently in people with AD than those without AD. Typically, they use the large amount of supporting data to ‘control’ for any other factors that might influence whether or not someone gets the condition in question (like sex, race or smoking)."

Source: National Eczema Foundation press release. August 28, 2024.