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Scientists at the University of Copenhagen have developed a painless and non-invasive test that can help to predict eczema risk in newborns. Approximately 25 percent of children are affected by atopic dermatitis, or AD, and around 60 percent of people develop it before age one. The sticky tape skin test presented in The Barrier [LL1] Dysfunction in Atopic Newborns (BABY) study, provides a way to collect skin cells from the back of babies’ hands and in-between their shoulder blades to then be analyzed for immune biomarkers. This will help determine the onset and severity of eczema during the first two years of life. This study was presented at the 31^st European Academy of Dermatology and Venereology Congress.

The cohort analyzed 450 babies, consisting of 300 term and 150 preterm newborns. The results of the study found a positive association between the level of Thymus and Activation-Regulated Chemokine, or TARC, and the severity of eczema showing 34.6 percent in term children and 21.2 percent among pre-term children. Babies with elevated TARC levels at two months showed twice as much likeness to develop eczema by two years old.  After adjusting for parental atopy, which is when the immune system is more prone to developing allergic diseases, and filaggrin gene mutations, the risk was still prevalent.

The author of the study and co-researcher, Dr. Anne-Sofie Halling, from the Bispebjerg Hospital at the University of Copenhagen says this is the first non-invasive test to collect skin biomarkers that can be used to predict the onset and severity of pediatric atopic eczema. This research will open opportunities with the goal of preventing eczema before it occurs.

References:
staff, Science X. “Non-Invasive Skin Immune Biomarker Test Helps Predict Development of Eczema in Babies, New Study Finds.” Medical Xpress - medical research advances and health news. Medical Xpress, September 7, 2022. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2022-09-non-invasive-skin-immune-biomarker-eczema.html.