[Some atypical forms of eczema in children (author's transl)]

Among 466 children under the age of 12 years who presented with eczema in a 5-year period, 68 p. 100 were atopic. 136 had various atypical signs of atopy. 44 suffered from pityriasis alba of sufficient intensity to justify referral for this reason; 10 had the typical features of seborrhoeic dermatitis of infants. 27 suffered from "forefoot" eczema ("juvenile plantar dermatosis"). The course and characteristics of this condition are discussed and compared with the series recently described in the West of Scotland. Our cases were exactly similar except for an aggravation in the summer months and the fact that our cases responded poorly to topical corticosteroids alone though improved with coal tar. Atopy and contact sensitivity to shoe materials are rare in both groups. We feel that this may be classified as "frictional" dermatitis and agree with our Scottish colleagues that the introduction of nylon socks during the last ten years may be important.