Skin microbial signatures for eczema: a birth cohort study (abridged secondary publication)
TF Leung1, SKW Tsui2, WH Tam3, M Ip4, MH Wang5
1 Department of Paediatrics, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong SAR, China
2 School of Biomedical Sciences, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong SAR, China
3 Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong SAR, China
4 Department of Microbiology, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong SAR, China
5 Jockey Club School of Public Health and Primary Care, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong SAR, China
- Of 166 Chinese infants, 71 (43%) developed eczema during infancy; 33 (46.5%) of these infants had persistent eczema by 12 months of age.
- Atopy with locally important allergens was associated with infantile eczema. Infants with more severe eczema were more likely to have persistent disease by 12 months of age.
- Eczema was associated with higher transepidermal water loss over antecubital fossae in early life.
- Infants with eczema had lower alpha diversity over the right antecubital fossa at birth and 6 months, and over the left popliteal fossa at 3 months and 12 months.
- The compositions of bacterial communities over the left antecubital fossa and the left popliteal fossa were less clustered in infants with eczema at 12 months.