[Neurodermatitis in childhood. Differential diagnosis--complications-- therapy].

The incidence of atopic dermatitis of 2-5% makes it one of the most common chronic diseases of childhood. In 80% of the patients, the skin symptoms first appear within one year of birth. In the differential diagnosis in infants, consideration must be given to candidiasis, seborrhoeic eczema and scabies; bacterial and viral superinfections are common complications. Approximately 80% of the victims have a disposition for atopy; in 50-80%, allergic rhinoconjunctivitis and/or bronchial asthma develops in addition. Despite recent progress in the understanding of the etiopathogenesis of atopic dermatitis, causal treatment is not yet in sight. For this reason, rational symptomatic treatment combined with exhaustive informative talks with and supervision of the children and their parents are of major importance for the management of this disease.