Antibiotics Increase Risk of Eczema in Children

Children who are given antibiotics in early infancy have 40 percent increased chances of developing eczema, a new research states.

The research, published in the British Journal of Dermatology, was an analysis of 20 separate U.K. studies that involved children and adults up to the age of 25. The study authors from Guy's and St Thomas' NHS Foundation Trust, King's College London, the Aberdeen Royal Infirmary and the University of Nottingham in the UK, examined the effect of antibiotics before birth and one year after birth.

The findings showed that infants had more chances of developing eczema if they were given antibiotics in the first-year of their lives. It also found that mother's intake of antibiotics during pregnancy did not harm babies.

"One potential explanation is that broad-spectrum antibiotics alter the gut microflora and that this in turn affects the maturing immune system in a way that promotes allergic disease development," study author Dr Teresa Tsakok of Guy's and St Thomas' said.

The study found that the more antibiotics were given to the babies, the higher the risk. According to the researchers, each course of antibiotic upped the risk of eczema by 7 per cent.

Medical New Today reported that atopic eczema was the most common form of the disease and mostly affected children. It may also develop later in life. Nearly 80 percent of atopic eczema cases develop by 5 years of age and some occur by the age of one.

"The evidence is not conclusive and the researchers are not suggesting that parents should withhold antibiotics from children when doctors feel such treatment is necessary, but studies like this give an insight into possible avoidable causes and may help to guide medical practice," Nina Goad of the British Association of Dermatologists told Medical News Today. She further said that in the U.K., eczema affects one in five children and has increased over time in developed countries. However, she maintained, the reason for this is unknown.