Summary Atopic dermatitis (AD) is a common type of eczema. The bacterium Staphylococcus (S.) aureus plays a role in AD, possibly via various substances that are part of the bacterium. In people with AD, how the body's immune system reacts to these substances might lead to the inflammation seen in AD. In this study, we provide an overview of what is known from current literature (e.g. studies published in medical journals) on the immune response (antibodies) against S. aureus substances (antigens) in AD patients compared to healthy controls (people without AD). Scientific literature was systematically obtained from different databases. We extracted data on how often (so‐called ‘prevalence’) antibodies of, among others, the IgE type directed against S. aureus can be found in AD patients. A weighted prevalence was calculated, as studies with more patients were regarded more relevant, and prevalence was compared between AD patients and healthy controls. Tests for differences between studies and overall study quality were done to interpret the robustness of the results. We included 26 publications with a total of 2369 patients. In 10 studies a control group (of people without AD) was also studied. Study quality was fair to poor. The weighted prevalence of IgE against S. aureus antigens was 33% for staphylococcal enterotoxin (SE) A, 35% for SEB and 16% for toxic shock syndrome toxin (TSST)‐1. Compared to healthy controls, AD patients had 8.37 times more IgE against SEA and 9.37 times more IgE against SEB. No significant difference was seen for IgE against TSST‐1. Interpretation of the results should take into account that there were some important differences in study design and the fact that the studies were generally small. In conclusion, AD patients more often show an IgE antibody response against the S. aureus antigens SEA and SEB compared to healthy controls. These findings show that S. aureus may have a role in AD.

Patients with AD more often show an IgE antibody response directed against S. aureus superantigens than healthy controls, supporting a role for S. aureus in AD pathogenesis.

Summary 特应性皮炎(AD)是一种常见的湿疹。金黄色葡萄球菌(S.)是AD的致病因子之一,可以随各种细菌物质侵入人体。AD患者的身体免疫系统对这些物质作出反应时,可能会引起常见于AD的炎症反应。在本研究中,我们对现有文献(例如发布在医学期刊上的研究)进行了概述,总结了其中对照AD患者和健康对照组(非AD患者)得出的关于人体自身免疫系统对金黄色葡萄球菌物质(抗原)作出的免疫反应(抗体)的研究结论。科学文献从不同的数据库系统地获取。我们提取了有关多久可以在AD患者体内发现一次针对金黄色葡萄球菌的IgE型抗体(所谓的“盛行率”)的数据。由于对更多患者实施的研究被视为更具相关性,因此我们计算了加权盛行率,并且对AD患者和健康对照组之间的盛行率进行了比较。完成了研究和总体研究质量之间的差异测试,以说明结果的稳健性。我们囊括了涵盖总共2,369名患者的26份刊物。在10项研究中,还对对照组(非AD患者)进行了研究。研究质量处于中低水准。针对金黄色葡萄球菌的IgE加权盛行率分别为:葡萄球菌肠毒素(SE) A 33%、SEB 35%、中毒性休克毒素(TSST)‐1 16%。相较于健康对照组,AD患者体内针对SEA的IgE和针对SEB的IgE分别是健康对照组的8.37倍和9.37倍。针对TSST‐1的IgE未发现存在显著差异。结果说明应考虑到研究设计方面存在一些显著差异,而且研究通常规模较小。总之,AD患者与健康对照组相比,更常会出现针对金黄色葡萄球菌抗原SEA和SEB的IgE抗体反应。上述发现表明,金黄色葡萄球菌可能是AD的致病因子。