Recently, with the rise of temperature and the revival of everything, many people have developed spring allergy symptoms such as redness, itching, and unbearable itching, some of which may even recur, seriously affecting sleep and disrupting normal life rhythm. In this regard, Cui Yong, vice president of the China-Japan Friendship Hospital and director of the dermatology department, reminded that this may be caused by atopic dermatitis, and the key to deal with it is to implement long-term standardized management of patients of all ages.
Cui Yong introduced that atopic dermatitis is known as the "top disease" in dermatology, and is a chronic skin disease caused by type 2 inflammatory response, with recurrent itching and rash as the main symptoms. Atopic dermatitis is prone to accompanying symptoms such as allergic rhinitis and asthma, with a risk of comorbidity that affects the patient's entire life cycle. The latest epidemiological survey in 2023 shows that the number of adult and child atopic dermatitis patients in China ranks first in the world, and the number of patients has been continuously increasing in the past 20 years, becoming a public health issue that cannot be ignored.
In addition to the large patient population, the recurrent nature of atopic dermatitis also brings a huge burden to patients, becoming an important reason for long-term management. Data shows that about one-third of patients are in the recurrence period each year, which means that patients suffer from severe itching, skin lesions, and sleep interruptions for a long time, affecting their growth, development, academic performance, career, and other aspects.
"Clarifying the disease mechanism is crucial for the long-term standardized treatment and management of atopic dermatitis." Cui Yong said that in the actual diagnosis and treatment process, there is still a situation where emphasis is placed on acute symptom control while neglecting long-term maintenance and management. "Type 2 inflammation is the core pathogenesis of atopic dermatitis, and 'targeted treatment' for type 2 inflammation is particularly crucial. When dealing with the problem of 'recurrence', both doctors and patients need to adhere to a 'long-term approach'. Long term standardized management should start with one year to set treatment goals and achieve precise treatment, which helps patients of different age groups return to normal life."
At present, in strengthening long-term management and improving the level of disease-related diagnosis and treatment, the construction of specialized diagnostic capabilities is becoming increasingly crucial. Gao Xinghua, chairman of the Dermatology and Venereology Branch of the Chinese Medical Association, said that the construction of specialized diagnosis is an important means to implement "specialized treatment of specialized diseases" and help patients achieve long-term management.
"The number of specialized consultations for atopic dermatitis in our country is relatively limited, and the standards and treatment goals for the early stages of the disease need to be clearer." Gao Xinghua said that he hopes to use tertiary medical institutions, skin specialty hospitals, and children's hospitals as carriers to strengthen the construction of specialized consultations and promote the high-quality development of the discipline by promoting the use of unified disease assessment tools and materials, establishing demonstration units for specialized consultations, establishing standards for the construction of specialized clinics for atopic dermatitis, and promoting the construction of regional specialized consultations and specialized medical consortia.
