GD09: The description of clinical features of atopic dermatitis in individuals of non-European ancestry: a systematic scoping review
Chiedu Ufodiama,1,2 Blessing Fabowale-Makinde3 and C. Elise Kleyn1,2
1Department of Dermatology, Salford Royal Hospital, Northern Care Alliance NHS Trust, Salford, UK; 2The Dermatology Centre, Division of Musculoskeletal and Dermatological Sciences, Manchester NIHR Biomedical Research Centre, The University of Manchester, Manchester, UK; and 3Medway NHS Foundation Trust, Kent, UK
Atopic dermatitis (AD) has the highest disability-adjusted life years (DALY) globally of all dermatoses, affecting the lives of individuals of all ancestries and skin types. Descriptors used for the clinical appearance of AD typically focus on disease presentation in skin of European ancestry. Consequently, we conducted a systematic scoping review to assess the extent to which the currently available peer-reviewed literature describes AD in individuals of non-European ancestry. The PRISMA-extension for scoping reviews (PRISMA-ScR) checklist was followed. The inclusion criteria were English language, peer-reviewed literature describing AD in individuals of African and Asian ancestry. A search of MEDLINE and Embase (via Ovid and PubMed) and a free-text search of Google were conducted (December 2020–January 2021). Identified studies were assessed and shortlisted by two independent reviewers, with a third reviewer helping to make a final decision where consensus could not be reached. Sixteen studies were identified and appraised. Clinical features of AD were reported in eight different regional geographical skin types. Six studies offered a description of the appearance of clinical features of AD, in non-European skin types (African American, Nigerian and Asian) with the remaining 10 studies reporting on the presence of clinical features, the most common being sites of lesion, (81%), lichenification (69%) and erythema (62%). Four studies made comparisons to skin of European ancestry. A further five studies offered comparisons of AD in non-European skin type with European skin type. The scoping systematic review confirmed there is a paucity of English language peer-reviewed studies that offer descriptions of the appearance of clinical features of AD in individuals of African and Asian ancestry. Furthermore, it highlights the need for both identification and comprehensive description of clinical features in individuals of non-European ancestry.
