What is atopic dermatitis and is it different from eczema?
Atopic dermatitis is a very common skin disease found in both adults and children. In fact, up to 10 to 20 percent of the population at some point suffers from atopic dermatitis. Atopic dermatitis is often used interchangeably with the term ‘eczema.’ Technically eczema is slightly different and is a more general term, but many physicians and patients will refer to atopic dermatitis and eczema as the same thing. Eczema and atopic dermatitis are skin diseases where you have rough, red, dry, itchy skin. These diseases are not contagious. They are caused by a variety of factors. Genetics or allergic families tend to have more problems with eczema.
