Korean J Fam Pract. 2016; 6(6): 553-559  https://doi.org/10.21215/kjfp.2016.6.6.553
Association between Electronic Cigarette Smoking and Atopic Dermatitis: The Korea Youth Risk Behavior Web-Based Survey 2014
U-Tae Kim, Jin-Ah Park*, Sung-Kyum Kim, Ji-Young Jung, Eun-Hye Yu, Seung-Ju Lee
Department of Family Medicine, Hanil General Hospital, Seoul, Korea
Jin-Ah Park
Tel: +82-2-901-3114, Fax: +82-2-901-3174
E-mail: parkjina@paran.com
Received: April 14, 2016; Revised: June 19, 2016; Accepted: July 7, 2016; Published online: December 20, 2016.
© The Korean Academy of Family Medicine. All rights reserved.

This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution Non-Commercial License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0) which permits unrestricted noncommercial use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
Abstract
Background: Global morbidity due to atopic dermatitis in adolescents has increased. The frequency of electronic cigarette use as an alternative means of smoking has also increased. This study analyzes the correlation between electronic cigarette smoking and the prevalence of atopic dermatitis in Korean adolescents.
Methods: Data on 72,060 subjects 12 to 18 years old were collected from The Korea Youth Risk Behavior Web-based Survey in 2014. Sex, residential status, location, smoking, alcohol consumption, drug abuse, educational level of father and mother, stress level, economic status, and the diagnosis of atopic dermatitis were investigated by an anonymous online survey. Multivariate logistic regression was used to calculate the odds ratios for these factors.
Results: In a comparison between electronic cigarette smokers and non-smokers, the use of electronic cigarettes was not clearly correlated with the increasing prevalence of atopic dermatitis. The prevalence of atopic dermatitis was also not increased with age, varying linearly from 12 to 18 years. In contrast, female sex, location, drinking, higher education of father and mother, severe stress, and a low economic status were estimated to increase the prevalence of atopic dermatitis.
Conclusion: Electronic cigarette smoking does not appear to be a risk factor for atopic dermatitis. Further research is needed to determine any quantitative dose-response relationship between the individual hazardous substances in electronic cigarettes and atopic dermatitis.
Keywords: Atopic Dermatitis; Prevalence; Electronic Cigarette Smoking; Korea Youth Risk Behavior Web-Based Survey
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