Demographic study of paediatric allergic conjunctivitis within a multiethnic patient population

Atopic dermatitis in skin of colour. Part 2: considerations in clinical presentation and treatment options

Recent advances in atopic dermatitis (AD) present the condition as a heterogeneous disease of distinct endotypes across ethnic groups. AD in people with skin of colour may appear psoriasiform, lichenoid, scaly or papular, with a violaceous colour and there is a higher prevalence of post-inflammatory dyspigmentation compared with affected individuals of White ethnicity. These differences in clinical presentation may limit the use of AD assessment tools in people with skin of colour, leading to the potential for misdiagnosis and underestimation of severity, particularly in relation to assessment of erythema. Recent targeted therapies for AD have been studied in multiple ethnic groups; however, ethnicity-based subgroup analysis is often not performed. Further research is required to understand whether treatment responses or safety may differ among ethnic groups.

Retrospective review on the use of topical cyclosporin a 0.05% for paediatric allergic conjunctivitis in Hong Kong Chinese

Purpose. To evaluate the efficacy of using topical cyclosporin A 0.05% (Restasis) for the treatment of paediatric allergic conjunctivitis. Methods. This retrospective study included consecutive cases of paediatric allergic conjunctivitis treated with Restasis between 2010 and 2013. Subjects with follow-up time less than 3 months after using Restasis were excluded. Itch severity score, symptom score, and sign score were compared before (baseline) and 3 months after using Restasis. Results. In 27 eyes of 14 patients (mean age 10.8 ± 3.2 years), 44.4% had allergic conjunctivitis, 33.3% had vernal keratoconjunctivitis, and 22.2% had atopic keratoconjunctivitis. The mean duration of ocular symptoms was 20.4 ± 13.2 months. 92.6% of subjects were using steroid eye drop before Restasis. After 3 months of topical Restasis, there were statistically significant reductions in the symptom, sign, and itch severity scores compared with baseline (all P ≤ 0.001) and 78.6% of subjects were able to be tapered off steroid eye drops. Conclusion. Topical Restasis was effective and safe in significantly reducing ocular itchiness, sign, and symptom scores at 3 months after use in paediatric allergic ocular conditions.