- Atopy
Infobox_Disease
Name = PAGENAME
Caption = Eczema—a typical atopic manifestation
DiseasesDB = 34489
ICD10 =
ICD9 =
ICDO =
OMIM = 147050
MedlinePlus =
eMedicineSubj =
eMedicineTopic =
MeshID =Atopy (IPA|/ˈætəpi/; Greek "ἀτοπία" - placelessness) or atopic syndrome is an allergic
hypersensitivity cite web |url=http://www.mercksource.com/pp/us/cns/cns_hl_dorlands_split.jsp?pg=/ppdocs/us/common/dorlands/dorland/one/000010034.htm |title=Dorlands Medical Dictionary:atopy |format= |work= |accessdate=] affecting parts of the body not in direct contact with theallergen .Causes
It may involve
eczema (atopic dermatitis ),allergic conjunctivitis ,allergic rhinitis andasthma . There appears to be a strong hereditary component. One study concludes that "the general risk of developing atopic dermatitis (3%) and atopy (7%) increases by a factor of two with each first-degree family member already suffering from atopy" [cite journal
coauthors = W. Küster , M. Petersen, E. Christophers, M. Goos and W. Sterry
title = A family study of atopic dermatitis
journal = Archives of Dermatological Research
volume = 282
issue = Number 2 / January, 1990
pages = 98–102
publisher =Springer Berlin / Heidelberg
date =Sunday, December 12, 2004
doi = 10.1007/BF00493466
accessdate =
author = Küster, W.] .The hereditary component is presumably due to certain genes coding proteins involved in the normal immune response mechanism, i.e.,
human leukocyte antigen , although environmental factors have also been implicated. Atopic syndrome can be fatal for those who experience serious allergic reactions such as anaphylaxis, brought on by reactions to food or environment.The individual components are all caused at least in part by
allergy (type I hypersensitivity reactions). These responses appear after the body is exposed to various allergens, for example specific kinds of food,pollen ,dander orinsect venom s. Although atopy has various definitions, most consistently it is defined by the presence of elevated levels of total and allergen-specificIgE in the serum of patient, leading to positive skin-prick tests to common allergens.The multicenter
PARSIFAL study in2006 , involving 6630 children age 5 to 13 in 5 European countries, suggested that restrictive use ofantibiotic s andantipyretic s, are associated with a reduced risk of allergic disease in children. [Flöistrup, H., Swartz, J., Bergström, A., Alm, J. S., Scheynius, A., et al. (2006). Allergic disease and sensitization in Steiner school children. "The Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology", 117(1), 59-66. PMID 16387585 [http://www.louisbolk.nl/downloads/mhuber/0601allergic.pdf Reprint copy] ]ymptoms
Some symptoms, from an atopy questionnaire [Note_label|atopyqa|1|none [http://web.archive.org/web/20050904174102/http://www.dermis.net/cgi-bin/atopiefrage/erster-e.asp Erlanger Atopy Questionnaire, original site offline, Internet Archive cache, due to be reposted at http://eczema.dermis.net/content/e06question/index_eng.html] ] :
* Cracks in the skin under theearlobe
*Eczema
** In elbow flexures and/or hollow of the knees
** Nipple eczema
**Neurodermatitis
** SubtypeDyshidrosis
*Keratosis pilaris
*Perlèche
*Conjunctivitis
* Chronic or seasonalrhinitis References
External links
* [http://www.atsdr.cdc.gov/HEC/CSEM/asthma/ Case Studies in Environmental Medicine (CSEM): Environmental Triggers of Asthma] – Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
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