Molluscum Contagiosum in a Pediatric American Indian Population: Incidence and Risk Factors

Abstract

BackgroundMolluscum contagiosum virus (MCV) causes an innocuous yet persistent skin infection in immunocompetent individuals and is spread by contact with lesions. Studies point to atopic dermatitis (AD) as a risk factor for MCV infection; however, there are no longitudinal studies that have evaluated this hypothesis.MethodsOutpatient visit data from fiscal years 2001–2009 for American Indian and Alaska Native (AI/AN) children were examined to describe the incidence of molluscum contagiosum (MC). We conducted a case-control study of patients <5 years old at an Indian Health Service (IHS) clinic to evaluate dermatological risk factors for infection.ResultsThe incidence rate for MC in children <5 years old was highest in the West and East regions. MC cases were more likely to have a prior or co-occurring diagnosis of eczema, eczema or dermatitis, impetigo, and scabies (p<0.05) compared to controls; 51.4% of MC cases had a prior or co-occurring diagnosis of eczema or dermatitis.ConclusionsThe present study is the first demonstration of an association between AD and MC using a case-control study design. It is unknown if the concurrent high incidence of eczema and MC is related, and this association deserves further investigation.

Molluscum contagiosum and associations with atopic eczema in children: a retrospective longitudinal study in primary care

“…A case-control study of children aged ≤5 years identified following outpatient visits in the US found that those with a diagnosis of MC were more likely to have either a current or previous AE diagnosis than controls. 15 Another case-control study identified children with MC and compared the prevalence of AE with that of a previous national cross-sectional study. It found a prevalence of 18.2% in the MC cohort and 5% in the national survey.…”

“…8 Atopic eczema (AE) has been found to be common in children with MC, [9][10][11][12][13] and the prevalence of AE is higher in children with MC than in the general population. 14,15 However, most studies describing this association have been based in specialty dermatology clinics, 12 and have not explored the temporal relationship between the two conditions. It is not clear whether this relationship holds for children with AE or MC in the community, or whether there is a time-dependent direction, in other words, that children with AE are more likely to develop MC.…”

Affective temperaments and concomitant alcohol use disorders in bipolar disorder

“…Most previous research has also demonstrated an association between AE and MC. A case-control study of children aged 5 years and under identified following outpatient visits in North America found that those with a diagnosis of MC were more likely to have a either a current or previous AE diagnosis when compared to controls (15). Another casecontrol study identified children with MC and compared the prevalence of AE with that of a previous national cross-sectional study.…”

“…Atopic eczema (AE) has been found to be common in children with MC (9-13) and the prevalence of AE is higher in children with MC than in the general population (14,15).…”

Handheld reflectance confocal microscopy for the diagnosis of molluscum contagiosum: Histopathology and dermoscopy correlation

“…Molluscum contagiosum (MC) is a common skin infection caused by a poxvirus and generally observed in children. MC lesions typically appear as single or multiple, small (2–5 mm), flesh‐coloured and translucent papules with a characteristic central umbilication …”