Advances in pediatric asthma and atopic dermatitis

Purpose of review Allergic diseases, including asthma, allergic rhinitis, atopic dermatitis, food allergy, and urticaria are common in general pediatric practice. This review highlights several significant advances in pediatric allergy over the past year, focusing on asthma and atopic dermatitis. Recent findings With increasing options for the treatment of allergic diseases much work is now focused on methods for individualizing treatments to a patients phenotype and genotype. Progress over the past year includes the characterization of effects of regular albuterol use in patients with genetic variations in the beta-adrenergic receptor. Maintenance asthma regiments for children in the first years of life are also an ongoing focus. The relation between upper airway allergic inflammation and asthma has continued to accumulate support and now extents to the middle ear. Environmental influences on asthma and interventions have been described, including environmental controls for asthma and the role of air pollution on lung development in children. Finally, concerns have been raised regarding the use of topical immunomodulators in young children with atopic dermatitis. Summary Progress continues in the care of children with atopic diseases. Attention to treatment with appropriate medications, patent-individualized environmental controls, and extensive education are the keys to successfully treating atopic children. This review highlights several recent advances but is not intended to be a comprehensive review.