News Israeli research shows children who suffer 'skin asthma' more likely to be diagnosed with ADHD.

A new study conducted at Beer Sheva's Soroka Medical Center found that children with eczema have a 75% higher chance of being diagnosed with ADHD than children without eczema.

Eczema, or atopic dermatitis, is a chronic condition in which the skin becomes itchy and inflamed. It affects 20% of children in the Western world, while ADHD affects upwards of 15% of children.

Proper treatment for atopic dermatitis can increase the child's quality of life, decrease itching, and allow better sleep at night. It is important to ensure the skin stays moist, and to use the creams or medications recommended by the child's pediatrician.

The study included 1,740 children between the ages of 0-18, including 840 with atopic dermatitis and a control group of 900 children without atopic dermatitis. Those children suffering from eczema had a 7.1% rate of ADHD diagnosis, while percentage of ADHD children in the control group was 4.1%.

The study, conducted by Soroka's Dr. Amir Horev and Professor Alex Zvulunov, Clalit's Professor Arnon Cohen, and Dr. Iris Manor, as well as researchers from Ben Gurion University.

It was presented during the annual Dermatologists' Union conference and published in the Acta Dermatovenerologica Croatica (ADC) scientific journal.

"The results of this study show that atopic dermatitis, 'skin asthma,' is not just a disease which influences...the skin, but other things as well."