Many of the dangerous natural conditions exacerbated by climate change could negatively impact patients with atopic dermatitis (AD).
The current study, conducted by the International Eczema Council, appears in the journal allergy.
The multinational research team identified 10 climate hazards related to greenhouse gas emissions and 18 studies with evidence of the impacts of these events on AD. Most studies provided evidence that these phenomena can exacerbate AD – from the direct impacts of fine particulate matter from wildfires to the indirect impacts of food insecurity caused by drought.
The following study highlights have been edited for length and clarity.
Why this study now?
It is important to understand the current and potential future impacts of climate change on Alzheimer’s disease, as environmental factors have been repeatedly shown to influence the onset and progression of the disease.
Environmental factors such as ultraviolet radiation, toxins, allergens, temperature and humidity can directly interact with the skin barrier, skin microbiome and the skin’s sensory and immunological systems. Individuals with AD are particularly vulnerable to these environmental influences.
To date, climate research has mainly focused on the impacts of air pollution on AD. However, the extent to which increasingly prevalent climate hazards affect AD is not yet sufficiently understood. Researchers attempted to fill this gap by synthesizing the literature on climate hazards related to greenhouse gas emissions and AD.
Which climate hazards were analyzed in the review?
The authors examined the impact of a number of climate change-related hazards on AD:
- Heat
- Heatwaves
- Forest fires
- dryness
- Storms
- Floods
- precipitation
- Sea level rise
- Climate change in the ocean
- Land cover change
What were the key findings?
The researchers found evidence that most climate hazards associated with greenhouse gas emissions can negatively impact various aspects of Alzheimer’s disease, including prevalence, severity, disease relapses, and associated health care utilization.
The impact of climatic hazards on Alzheimer’s disease appears to vary by geographic region and climate. For example, while higher outdoor temperatures were associated with lower severity of Alzheimer’s symptoms in southern Italy and lower use of Alzheimer’s-related health services in Denmark, warmer weather in the United States was also associated with poorer disease control in children with Alzheimer’s disease.
What is the most important message for clinicians?
The clinical impact of climatic hazards on AD can be considered at the individual patient, community, and population levels.
At the individual level, weather-related Alzheimer’s disease attacks can lead to temporal fluctuations in health care utilization.
The increasing frequency of extreme weather events poses the risk of disrupting predictable seasonal patterns and consequently changing the self-management of patients with Alzheimer’s disease.
At the community level, disruption of access to medicines in communities affected by extreme weather events not only destabilizes pre-existing conditions but can also prevent early and effective treatment of new cases.
The authors disclosed numerous relevant relationships with industry.
