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Sunlight and air temperature affect autoantibody activity and skin involvement of bullous pemphigoid
K S Kyriakis1, D N Panteleos, A D Tosca
1Department of Dermatology and Venereology, West Attica General Hospital, Athens, Greece.
Background And Design:
Sunlight and air temperature are environmental parameters with considerable influence upon autoimmunity. Their impact on idiopathic bullous pemphigoid (BP) was studied 1) in a prospective series of 27 patients with regard to clinical activity and 2) in a retrospective series of 232 cases during a 7-year period with regard to immunoserology.
Results:
Skin involvement and the onset of disease showed an immediate and cumulative pattern of response to sunlight and air temperature. Immunoserologic analysis showed a strong correlation of autoantibody expressivity with these two environmental measurements.
Conclusions:
This study verifies previous sporadic clinical and experimental data concerning the influence of environmental factors on BP. Accordingly, preventive measures against exposure to sunlight and high temperature are recommended.