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Staphylococcus aureus in the lesions of atopic dermatitis
Author(s) -
LEYDEN JAMES J.,
MARPLES RICHARD R.,
KLIGMAN ALBERT M.
Publication year - 1974
Publication title -
british journal of dermatology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.304
H-Index - 179
eISSN - 1365-2133
pISSN - 0007-0963
DOI - 10.1111/j.1365-2133.1974.tb06447.x
Subject(s) - staphylococcus aureus , atopic dermatitis , medicine , antibiotics , lesion , staphylococcal skin infections , dermatology , staphylococcal infections , micrococcaceae , microbiology and biotechnology , pathology , antibacterial agent , bacteria , biology , genetics
SUMMARY Quantitative aerobic cultures were obtained from fifty patients with chronic plaques, and from twenty with exudative lesions of atopic dermatitis. In the former, Staphylococcus aureus was isolated from 90% and the density exceeded 1 × 10 6 /cm 2 in 45% of the samples. In the exudative form, Staph. aureus was recovered in every case with a mean density of 14 × 10 6 organisms per cm 2 . Staph. aureus was the dominant organism not only in the lesions but in nearby clinically normal skin. Despite these high numbers, clinical signs of infection were lacking. Systemic and topical antibiotic therapy pro‐duced a profound decrease in Staph. aureus density. It is proposed that high numbers of Staph. aureus may aggravate the underlying lesion and be the source of Staph. aureus infections in contacts.