Prevalence of asthma in patients with atopic dermatitis: A systematic review and meta-analysis

Research output: Contribution to journalReviewResearchpeer-review

Background: It is well established that asthma is common in patients with atopic dermatitis (AD). Objectives: We performed a systematic review and meta-analysis to determine the prevalence of asthma and respiratory symptoms in individuals with AD as well as the association between AD and asthma. Methods: At least 2 authors independently searched the medical databases PubMed, EMBASE, LILACS, and SCOPUS for all English-language studies with data on asthma prevalence among patients with AD or the association between AD and asthma. Pooled odds ratios with 95% confidence intervals (CIs) and pooled proportions were estimated with random-effects models. The Newcastle-Ottawa scale was used to assess study quality. Results: The search yielded 39,503 articles. Of these, 213 studies were included in a quantitative analysis. The overall pooled prevalence of asthma was 25.7% (95% CI, 23.7-27.7) in patients with AD and 8.1% (95% CI, 7.0-9.4) among reference individuals. There was a significant association between AD and asthma when compared with reference individuals (odds ratio, 3.03; 95% CI, 2.64-3.47). Limitations: The definitions of AD and asthma differed across the included studies and varied from self-report to physician diagnosed. Conclusions: Asthma is a common comorbidity of AD. Physicians should be cognizant of this relationship and address asthma symptoms in their patients.

Original languageEnglish
JournalJournal of the American Academy of Dermatology
Volume84
Issue number2
Pages (from-to)471-478
Number of pages8
ISSN0190-9622
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 2021

Bibliographical note

Publisher Copyright:
© 2020 American Academy of Dermatology, Inc.

    Research areas

  • association, asthma, atopic dermatitis, eczema, meta-analysis, prevalence, systematic review

ID: 301440198