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Background/objectives: Eczema is a common chronic debilitating skin condition in childhood. Data on the epidemiology and natural history of eczema across the life course are lacking. This analysis aimed to describe these epidemiological features in Australian children and adults., Methods: Data collected on eczema from four Australian cohort studies were analysed: namely HealthNuts, Melbourne Atopic Cohort Study (MACS), Tasmanian Longitudinal Health Study (TAHS) and the Australian arm of the European Community Respiratory Health Survey (ECRHS)., Results: Among children aged under 6 years, 28.8%-35.6% have ever-had eczema, and 16.7%-26.6% had 'current eczema'. Among those aged 6-12 years, 14.6%-24.7% had 'current eczema' with 12.0%-18.5% of those at ages of 6 and 10 years classified as having moderate-to-severe eczema according to the Scoring of Atopic Dermatitis (SCORAD) index. In adults, the prevalence of 'eczema ever' ranged between 13.8% and 48.4%. The 12-month period prevalence of eczema was 15.1% at age 18, while current eczema was 8.5% at an average age of 51, and 8.8% at an average age 53 years. Eczema was more common among young boys, but this difference became non-significant for older children and early adolescents. In contrast, eczema was more common for adult women than men., Conclusions: Eczema is common both in children and adults. The proportion of severe eczema in children was substantial., (© 2022 The Authors. Australasian Journal of Dermatology published by John Wiley & Sons Australia, Ltd on behalf of Australasian College of Dermatologists.)

Background: There is limited information on risk factors for eczema in adults. Recent evidence suggests that air pollution may be associated with increased incidence of eczema in adults. We aimed to assess this possible association., Methods: Ambient air pollution exposures (distance from a major road, nitrogen dioxide [NO 2 ], fine particulate matter with an aerodynamic diameter ≤2.5 µm [PM 2.5 ]) were assessed for the residential address of Tasmanian Longitudinal Health Study participants at ages 43 and 53 years. Eczema incidence (onset after age 43 years), prevalence (at 53 years), and persistence were assessed from surveys, while IgE sensitization was assessed using skin prick tests. The presence or absence of eczema and sensitization was classified into four groups: no atopy or eczema, atopy alone, non-atopic eczema, and atopic eczema. Adjusted logistic and multinomial regression models were fitted to estimate associations between ambient air pollution and eczema, and interaction by sex was assessed., Results: Of 3153 participants in both follow-ups, 2369 had valid skin prick tests. For males, a 2.3 ppb increase in baselineNO 2 was associated with increased odds of prevalent eczema (OR = 1.15 [95% CI 0.98-1.36]) and prevalent atopic eczema (OR = 1.26 [1.00-1.59]). These associations were not seen in females (p for interaction = 0.08, <0.01). For both sexes, a 1.6 µg/m 3 increase in PM 2.5 exposure at follow-up was associated with increased odds of aeroallergen sensitization (OR = 1.15 [1.03-1.30])., Conclusion: Increased exposure to residential ambient air pollutants was associated with an increased odds of eczema, only in males, and aeroallergen sensitization in both genders., (© 2021 EAACI and John Wiley and Sons A/S. Published by John Wiley and Sons Ltd.)