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Background: Nickel, the fifth most common element on Earth, is the leading inducer of contact allergies in humans, with potent immunological effects. Nickel‐induced contact allergies predominantly affect females. Maternal exposure to nickel has been associated with several developmental abnormalities. However, how a maternal nickel exposure affects the development of atopic diathesis and immune abnormalities in children has never been addressed. Objectives: We aimed to determine whether maternal nickel exposure affects the development of atopic dermatitis and immune abnormalities in their children. Methods: Using a birth cohort study, we analysed 140 mother–child pairs recruited in 2012–2015 from central Taiwan. Maternal exposure to nickel was estimated using urinary nickel levels measured by inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP‐MS). The serum levels of 65 analytes and IgE in 3‐year‐old children were profiled with a multiplex ELISA. The correlation between the maternal urinary nickel concentration and serum analyte levels was assessed using Spearmen's correlation. Multivariant regression analysis was performed to evaluate the association between maternal urinary nickel levels and serum analyte concentrations in their children. Results: The geometric means of the maternal urinary nickel and the children's serum IgE levels were 2.27 μg/L and 69.71 IU/mL, respectively. The maternal nickel exposure was associated with increased serum levels of IL‐1β, IL‐2, TNF‐α, and leukaemia inhibitory factor (LIF) but with decreased serum levels of matrix metalloproteinase‐1 (MMP‐1), IL‐2R, and eotaxin‐1 in the children. In addition, the development of childhood atopic dermatitis at 3 years old was significantly associated with the child's serum levels of IgE and IL‐2R, but it was negatively associated with the maternal nickel exposure. Conclusions: This is the first study showing the potential immunological effects of maternal nickel exposure in their children at an early developmental stage. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: An association between alopecia areata (AA) and atopic dermatitis (AD) has been reported in previous studies. However, the temporality of this relationship remains unclear based on prior cross‐sectional and case‐control studies. Objective: This study aimed to investigate the bidirectional association between AA and AD. Methods: Participants were recruited from the National Health Insurance Research Database of Taiwan. In analysis 1, we included 12 022 AA patients and 48 088 matched controls to assess the association between AA and AD risks. In analysis 2, 40 307 AD patients and 161 228 matched controls were included to assess the association between AD and AA risks. A Cox regression model was used to calculate adjusted hazard ratios (aHRs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs). Results: Compared with controls, AA patients had a significantly increased risk of developing AD (aHR: 5.47; 95% CI: 4.76‐6.28) after adjustment for potential confounders. Likewise, AD patients had a significantly increased risk of developing AA (aHR: 6.00; 95% CI: 5.04‐7.14). Conclusions: Our study demonstrated a bidirectional association between AA and AD, suggesting that these two diseases may share common pathogenic mechanisms. This finding has implications for follow‐up and screening of AA patients for AD and vice versa. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

It is common to recommend breastfeeding and a delayed introduction of solids to prevent atopic dermatitis (AD). However, the scientific evidence for this is inconclusive. The aim of this study was to explore the effect of breastfeeding and solids on AD, when taking account of reverse causality. This on-going birth cohort study was designed to sample 24,200 representative post-partum women and their babies from the Taiwan National Birth Registration database. Using two home interviews at 6 and 18 months after birth, with structured questionnaires about diet and physician's diagnosis of AD by parental reports, a total of 20,172 pairs (83.4%) were reviewed completely. Considering reverse causality, we excluded 2399 children with AD in the first 6 months of life and 18,733 were finally recruited. All study participants provided informed consent as approved by the Ethics Review Board of the National Taiwan College of Public Health. After adjustment for potential confounders, the overall results showed that the increased duration of breastfeeding seemed to increase the risk of AD at 18 months in children. However, no significant effect was found for the delayed introduction of solids on the risk of AD. There is no evidence of a protective effect of prolonged breastfeeding and a delayed introduction of solids against AD among children at age 18 months, and may even be a risk factor of AD. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]