Neurodermatitis (atopic dermatitis)

Atopic dermatitis or also neurodermatitis is a chronic or intermittently recurring eczema disease that is usually accompanied by severe, often almost unbearable itching. It mostly affects children. In Europe, at times some 10 to 15% of children suffer from this inflammatory skin disease. The trend is an upward one. Neurodermatitis can already occur in infancy and also accompany the child - to varying degrees and interrupted by phases free of problems - into adulthood. In many cases, however, the disease has healed up again by adolescence. In adults, atopic eczema occurs substantially less frequently to date, at up to 3%.

A characteristic of neurodermatitis is primarily the considerable itching that can also become an endurance test at night as well as during the day. It can result in sleep disorders and consequently reduced performance capability. Often, the parents are also affected by it. In addition, those affected also have a particularly dry skin even in bout-free intervals. Different symptoms predominate depending on the age of the patient.

There are many synonyms for neurodermatitis: endogenous eczema, atopic eczema, atopic dermatitis, dermatitis atopica, or also constitutional eczema. The term 'atopic' or 'atopia' comes from the Greek (atopia = unusualness, strangeness) and refers to the genetic disposition to oversensitivity reactions (allergies) of the skin and the mucous membranes. Atopia sufferers are therefore people with an increased risk of developing an illness from the atopic spectrum disorder. In addition to atopic dermatitis (neurodermatitis), allergic asthma, allergic hay fever (allergic rhinitis), or allergic conjunctivitis are also 'atopic' disorders. With the majority of neurodermatitis patients, a sensibilisation (allergy) therefore exists, e.g. to certain foods, food additives, pollen, moulds, or also house dust mites (faeces). This is, however, not the case with all neurodermatitis patients.