Daily Emollient Application May Reduce Risk for Atopic Dermatitis in Infants
Daily emollient applications starting before age 9 weeks linked to reduction in cumulative incidence of atopic dermatitis at age 24 months
By Dermsquared Editorial Team | July 25, 2025
WEDNESDAY, July 23, 2025 (HealthDay News) -- Daily emollient application beginning before age 9 weeks is associated with a reduced cumulative incidence of atopic dermatitis by 24 months in a population not selected for risk, according to a study published online July 23 in JAMA Dermatology.
Eric L. Simpson, M.D., from Oregon Health & Science University in Portland, and colleagues examined whether emollient intervention in infants not selected for risk reduces atopic dermatitis incidence in a randomized pragmatic clinical trial involving 1,247 infant-parent dyads. The dyads were randomly assigned to a daily full-body emollient application daily moisturizer group starting by age 9 weeks or a control group that refrained from emollient use.
The researchers found that the cumulative incidence of atopic dermatitis was 36.1 and 43.0 percent in the emollient and control groups, respectively, at 24 months, with a relative risk of 0.84. A larger magnitude of effect was seen in the population not at high risk for atopic dermatitis (relative risk, 0.75). The presence of a dog in the house did not significantly modify the protective effect (relative risk, 0.68). No between-group differences were seen in cutaneous adverse events.
"Given the current and frequent use of moisturizers by the U.S. population, this intervention may represent a practical and safe approach to reducing the burden of atopic dermatitis in U.S. communities," the authors write.
Several authors disclosed ties to the biopharmaceutical and dermatology industries.