Do microbes play a role in idiopathic dermatologic diseases?
The pathogenesis of numerous dermatologic conditions remain unexplained. The hypothesis of infection has been proposed for diseases such as scleroderma, psoriasis, eczema, seborrheic dermatitis, dyshidrosis, acne, and rosacea. Is it possible that specific microbes, or changes in the microbial community on the skin, initiate or sustain some of these diseases? If so, microbes might exert their pathogenic effect by release of toxins, invasion of cells, alteration in host cell regulation, induction of allergic or inflammatory responses, or alteration in the microbial community.If microbes play a role, the failure to link microbes to these diseases may be explained by several factors. First, one must advance the hypothesis of an infectious cause if one hopes to find a causative microbe. Second, previously used microbial detection technologies are not adequate to detect all microbes, as detailed above. Third, microbes may initiate a pathologic process, yet be absent at the peak of disease wh
