A new article published in Annals of Dermatology reported that according to epidemiological studies, atopic dermatitis (AD) in adults may be a risk factor for cardiovascular disease (CVD). However, the link remains controversial.

Dyslipidemia is a known major cause of CVD. About half of children and adolescents with hyper-low density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) and hypo-high density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) have persistent AD after 10 years of age. Dyslipidemia in adolescence is a major risk factor for CVD in adulthood, so it is important to diagnose and manage these cases early.

Therefore, the relationship between AD and dyslipidemia in adolescents was analyzed in a cross-sectional study. Here, data was extracted from the 2010-2013 Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (KNHANES).

The results revealed that overall, 11.4% of the participants were diagnosed with AD by a physician. Mean fasting blood glucose, total cholesterol, triglycerides, LDL-C and HDL-C values were not significantly different between the two groups – the AD group and the control group. However, when the two groups were compared by applying the criteria for dyslipidemia, the proportion of hyper-LDL-C (≥130 mg/dl) in the AD group was statistically significantly higher than that of the control group. However, there were no remarkable differences in hypercholesterolemia, hypo-HDL-C, and hypertriglyceridemia between the two groups. AD was associated with hyper-LDL-C, even in multivariate analyses models. Meanwhile, there was no significant association between AD and other hyperlipidemia.

The results confirmed that AD in adolescence was associated with hyper-LDL-C. Therefore, for treatment of AD in adolescence, dermatological symptoms as well as the possibility of potential cardiovascular complications in adulthood must be considered.

Source: Annals of Dermatology. 2021 Oct;33(5):483-485. English. 2021. doi: 10.5021/ad.2021.33.5.483