Therapeutic effectiveness of treatment with an elimination diet in children with atopic dermatitis of different ages.

The aim of our study was the evaluation of the influence of the reaction of food hypersensitivity on the pathogenesis of atopic dermatitis and the examination of the therapeutic role of an elimination diet. 140 children were examinated. Based on elimination and provocation tests, the influence of different kinds of food on the clinical symptoms of atopic dermatitis was examined. In order to evaluate the role of particular kinds of food in the pathogenesis of atopic dermatitis in the examined children we analysed the results of skin "prick" tests and the measurement of specific IgE levels. Pathological reactions to one kind of food (cow's milk) in 10% of children and to many kinds of foods in 90% children was noted. An elimination diet in infants and in children under three years old was the most successful. In the older children with atopic dermatitis the elimination diet should be combined with antihistaminic drugs and local treatment of the skin.