title: Adult eczema in Italy: prevalence and associations with environmental factors.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Studies on the prevalence of eczema and atopic dermatitis (AD), and on the factors associated with these diseases, have been mostly performed in children, whereas studies on adult populations are lacking.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  To determine the prevalence of eczema and AD in the Italian adult population, and to investigate risk factors associated with the disease.
  
  
  METHODS
  A postal screening questionnaire was administered to 18 357 randomly selected subjects aged 20-44 years in the Gene-Environment Interaction in Respiratory Diseases study, which involved seven centres distributed across northern, central and southern Italy. The questionnaire included items on the occurrence of doctor-diagnosed eczema, asthma and hay fever, socio-demographic characteristics and environmental exposures.
  
  
  RESULTS
  In all, 10 464 (57.0%) subjects responded to the questionnaire. The prevalence of current eczema was 8.1% (95% CI: 7.6-8.7%), while the prevalence of eczema with asthma and/or hay fever (EAH), which was adopted as proxy of AD, was 3.4% (95% CI: 3.1-3.8%). About 60% of the subjects with current eczema reported the onset of the disease in adulthood. In multi-variable models, the prevalence of eczema was significantly associated with female sex, older age, living close to industrial plants, high levels of heavy traffic near home and living in central-southern Italy.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Eczema and EAH are highly prevalent in Italian young adults, especially in women. Our results suggest that adult onset is not unusual, and that environmental factors may influence the occurrence of eczema and EAH.
authors.affiliation: Unit of Epidemiology and Medical Statistics, Department of Public Health and Community Medicine, University of Verona, Verona, Italy.
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Pesce
authors.affiliation: Unit of Epidemiology and Medical Statistics, Department of Public Health and Community Medicine, University of Verona, Verona, Italy.
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Marcon
authors.affiliation: Unit of Respiratory Medicine and Allergology, CPA-ASL TO-2, Turin, Italy.
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Carosso
authors.affiliation: Department of Internal Medicine, Immuno-Allergic and Respiratory Diseases, Ospedali Riuniti di Ancona, Ancona, Italy.
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Antonicelli
authors.affiliation: Unit of Epidemiology and Medical Statistics, Department of Public Health and Community Medicine, University of Verona, Verona, Italy.
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Cazzoletti
authors.affiliation: Section of Internal Medicine, University of Verona, Verona, Italy.
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Ferrari
authors.affiliation: Institute of Respiratory Diseases, University of Sassari, Sassari, Italy.
authors.forename: A G
authors.initials: AG
authors.lastname: Fois
authors.affiliation: Unit of Epidemiology and Medical Statistics, Department of Public Health and Community Medicine, University of Verona, Verona, Italy.
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Marchetti
authors.affiliation: Unit of Occupational Medicine, AO Istituti Ospedalieri di Verona, Verona, Italy.
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Olivieri
authors.affiliation: Institute of Respiratory Diseases, University of Sassari, Sassari, Italy.
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Pirina
authors.affiliation: Department of Experimental Medicine, University of Perugia, Perugia, Italy.
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Pocetta
authors.affiliation: Department of Public Health and Pediatrics, University of Turin, Turin, Italy.
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Tassinari
authors.affiliation: Unit of Epidemiology and Medical Statistics, Department of Public Health and Community Medicine, University of Verona, Verona, Italy.
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Verlato
authors.affiliation: Department of Public Health, Experimental and Forensic Medicine, University of Pavia, Pavia, Italy.
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Villani
authors.affiliation: Unit of Epidemiology and Medical Statistics, Department of Public Health and Community Medicine, University of Verona, Verona, Italy.
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: de Marco
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D017668:Age of Onset; D001249:Asthma / Q000453:epidemiology*; D002980:Climate; D015897:Comorbidity; D003876:Dermatitis, Atopic / Q000453:epidemiology*; D004485:Eczema / Q000453:epidemiology*; D005260:Female; D059647:Gene-Environment Interaction; D006306:Health Surveys; D006801:Humans; D007558:Italy / Q000453:epidemiology; D008297:Male; D018986:Motor Vehicles; D015995:Prevalence; D012111:Residence Characteristics; D006255:Rhinitis, Allergic, Seasonal / Q000453:epidemiology*; D012307:Risk Factors; D012737:Sex Factors; D055815:Young Adult