HLA antigens, jejunal morphology and associated diseases in children with dermatitis herpetiformis

Forty-five Hungarian and Finnish children from 1.5 to 15 years with dermatitis herpetiformis were studied for HLA antigens, jejunal morphology on gluten-containing diet and associated diseases in the patients and their relatives. A strong association with HLA-B8 was found in patients of both nationalities, the relative risks were 12.8 and 9.6, respectively. The Hungarian patients were also typed for HLA-DR locus, and an association with DR3 but not with DR7 was observed. Patients with subtotal villous atrophy had slightly more often HLA-B8 and DR3 than those with milder intestinal lesions. Atopic eczema occurred in 20% of the patients and family history of atopy seemed to have an inverse correlation with HLA-B8 and DR3.