The Importance of Bacterial Superantigens Produced by Staphylococcus aureus in the Treatment of Atopic Dermatitis Using Povidone-Iodine

• Published in: Dermatology (Basel) Vol. 212; no. Suppl 1; pp. 26 - 34
• Main Authors: Sugimoto, Kazuo, Ishikawa, Nobuyasu, Terano, Takashi, Kitukawa, Yoshio, Kubosawa, Hitoshi, Ito, Shoichi, Hattori, Takamichi
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Basel, Switzerland S. Karger AG 01.01.2006
• Subjects: Adolescent; Adult; Anti-Infective Agents, Local - administration & dosage; Antigens; Antitoxins - immunology; Bacteria; Bacterial Toxins - immunology; Cervical Vertebrae; Child; Dermatitis; Dermatitis, Atopic - drug therapy; Dermatitis, Atopic - immunology; Drug Resistance, Bacterial; Duodenitis - drug therapy; Duodenitis - immunology; Female; Humans; Immunoglobulin E - immunology; Male; Povidone-Iodine - administration & dosage; Skin diseases; Skin Disinfection; Spinal Cord Diseases - drug therapy; Spinal Cord Diseases - immunology; Spinal Diseases - drug therapy; Spinal Diseases - immunology; Staphylococcal Infections - drug therapy; Staphylococcal Infections - immunology; Staphylococcus aureus; Staphylococcus aureus - immunology; Superantigens - immunology; Toxins; Treatment Outcome; Povidone-iodine; Bacterial superantigen; Antitoxin IgE antibody; Disinfection therapy; Atopic dermatitis
• ISBN: 3805580592; 9783805580595
• ISSN: 1018-8665; 1421-9832
• DOI: 10.1159/000089196

Atopic dermatitis (AD) is frequently associated with intestinal and cervical lesions. Staphylococcus aureus produces many kinds of toxins, the bacterial superantigens. The detection rate of toxins was 80.1% from 196 S. aureus strains. Neurological examinations revealed abnormalities in 59 out of 81 AD patients. Cervical magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) was performed in 46 patients randomly and showed abnormal findings in 38 of these patients. In 23 patients who underwent MRI and duodenal biopsy, 3 were found to be normal neurologically and 2 patients showed normal duodenal tissue. However, 18 patients had abnormal findings both on neurological examination and in duodenal tissue. Serial duodenal biopsy tests were performed in 10 AD patients. In 5 patients, the findings of chronic duodenitis disappeared after the therapy with povidone-iodine. These data indicate that the therapy was effective not only for the skin lesions, but improved gastrointestinal tract lesions and cervical myelopathy, by eradicating bacterial superantigens.