Atopic dermatitis: the relationship to temperature and seasonality in the United States

Abstract

Background

Climatologic factors may affect atopic dermatitis (AD), and there have been few explorations into this topic. Because of its size, the United States (US) has a broad range of climates. The objective of this study is to assess the relationship between ambulatory office visits physicians for AD with temperature and season.

Methods

US region‐specific satellite‐derived data air temperature from the North America Land Data Assimilation System from 1993 to 2011 were studied in relation with ambulatory AD visits to all physicians from the National Ambulatory Medical Care Survey.

Results

Over the 19‐year study period, in no regional location in the US is there clear evidence of a winter flare of AD. The greatest numbers of visits occur in May and June, and smaller peaks also occur in January and October. As the ambient air temperature increases, the likelihood of an AD visit rises (P < .0001). In the South, the hottest US climate, summer is responsible for substantially more AD visits. In every other region and the US overall, the largest number of AD visits occur in spring. AD visits appear to display regional variation in comparing the Northeast, South, Midwest, and West.

Conclusions

Increased temperatures predict increased likelihood of AD office visits.

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