Atopic signs and symptoms: assessing the 'atopy score' concept.
BACKGROUND
Score concepts have been suggested for the standardised diagnosis of atopic dermatitis, incorporating various anamnestic and clinical minor criteria of atopy, including the 'Erlangen Score', developed in the hospital-based setting of a dermatitis clinic.


OBJECTIVE
To evaluate the properties of this score in the context of a population-based epidemiological study.


METHODS
The association between relevant atopic criteria and previous or current flexural eczema was evaluated in 2,352 hairdressing apprentices.


RESULTS
The association was not as strong as in the patient-based studies, comparing the respective odds ratios. Accordingly, the discriminating power of the Erlangen Score was poor, resulting in low sensitivity (55.7%) and specificity (73.8%) for, e.g., 8 points as cutpoint.


CONCLUSIONS
While the score appears useful to summarise minor criteria, the individual relevance of its point values should not be overestimated in view of a low positive predictive value in a population (compared to a clinical) setting.
Department of Dermatology, Environmental Medicine and Health Theory, University of Osnabrück, Germany. wuter@rz.uni-osnabrueck.de
W
W
Uter
H J
HJ
Schwanitz
A
A
Pfahlberg
O
O
Gefeller
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D015331:Cohort Studies; D003876:Dermatitis, Atopic / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000209:etiology / Q000473:pathology; D009783:Dermatitis, Occupational / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000209:etiology / Q000473:pathology; D005260:Female; D005858:Germany / Q000453:epidemiology; D006203:Hair Preparations / Q000009:adverse effects; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D015995:Prevalence; D011446:Prospective Studies; D012720:Severity of Illness Index; D013223:Statistics as Topic; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires
D006203:Hair Preparations