[Atopy and associated diseases].

Abstract

In this study of the literature, the authors review the possible association between atopy and other conditions. The mostly reported observations are related to atopic dermatitis, but there is also some real relationship with respiratory allergy: this is true for mucoviscidosis. Some association are significant and interesting from the pathogenetic point of view: they may be classified under three headings (digestive and renal diseases, immunologic disturbances). Therefore, this study refers to intestinal absorption disturbance, gluten sensitive enteropathy, dermatitis herpetiformis, colic diseases, and also to glomerulopathies, immediate and delayed hypersensitivity deficiency and polymorphonuclear functional deficiency. Other associations do exist, but the low number of cases and the absence of a common pathogenesis allow no conclusion to be drawn (ectodermal anidrotic ectodermal dysplasia, Dubowitz syndrome). Some of them are certainly only fortuitous: this should be more definitely established by later studies. Some diseases may be accompanied by an eczematiform dermatitis (phenylketonuria, anomalies of histidin metabolism). Frequency of associations with alopecia areata and dominant ichthyosis vulgaris is also discussed. This review gives the possibility of emphasizing the absence of statistically significant hematopathic evolution of atopic dermatitis and calls attention on the Wiskott-Aldrich-syndrome as a model for the studies on atopy.