Anne Marie Singh, MD: Allergy Testing for Infant Atopic Dermatitis Patients

Anne Marie Singh, MD, spoke at the Revolutionizing Atopic Dermatitis (RAD) 2023 Annual Meeting in Washington, DC, about the steps to take for dermatologists and for families when infants face both atopic dermatitis (AD) and allergy.

Singh is known for her work as Associate Professor of Pediatric Allergy, Asthma and Immunology at University of Wisconsin’s School of Medicine and Public Health.

“The most important thing, when we take care of these infants is to really focus on their skin,” she stated. “Taking good care of their skin and proper skincare. And only after that would we start thinking about an allergen trigger, when the regular treatments have kind of failed.”

Singh also explained some of the biggest takeaways from her presentation, including describing conceptions and misconceptions patients may sometimes have regarding AD and allergy.

“The other really important thing is if you look online or you talk to people, there is this feeling out there that foods are a major cause of eczema in these children,” she explained. “And while it's true food allergy and eczema, or food allergy and atopic dermatitis, often go together, they're often co-expressed. For the food to be the only trigger for the atopic derm or the or atopic derm to be the only symptom of a food allergy, that is actually quite rare.”

She continued her discussion about the talk, explaining the major misconception she wants patients and their families to have explained to them.

“The main take home point that I want people to understand is yes, absolutely food allergy and eczema, or food allergy and atopic dermatitis, they go together,” she said. “A lot of children with eczema have food allergy, but the type of food allergy that they have, is really immediate, IgE hypersensitivity. So hives, coughing, wheezing, vomiting, those sorts of symptoms. Where eczema is the only symptom of a food allergy, that is actually less common than I think most people appreciate.”

Singh described her inspiration for pursuing the topic in general, noting that her motivation was originally questions like what causes both AD and food allergy, which infants will end up developing asthma or allergic rhinitis, and what are the mechanisms for this.

“I think what inspires me to think about this topic and to take care of these children, is that these parents are really looking for answers,” she explained. “And they're trying to understand, especially with their babies, why their skin is the way it is.”

To learn more about her RAD conference presentation, view Singh’s full interview with HCPLive above.

The quotes contained in this article were edited for clarity.