Systematic review and network meta-analysis of different types of emollient for the prevention of atopic dermatitis in infants

Prophylactic application of emollients has been an effective strategy against infant atopic dermatitis (AD); however, the difference of different emollients is unknown. We performed this network meta-analysis to compare different emollients in preventing infant AD. A systematic search was performed in PubMed, EMBASE and Cochrane library to identify relevant studies from their inception through 28 February, 2022. We evaluated the quality of eligible studies using the Cochrane risk of bias assessment tool. Data analysis was performed using STATA 14.0. Eleven studies were included for data analysis. Direct meta-analysis suggested that early application of emollients effectively prevented AD development in high-risk infants (risk ratio [RR], 0.64; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.47 to 0.88). Network meta-analysis suggested that emollient emulsion might the better option for preventing infant AD development, with a surface under the cumulative ranking curve (SUCRA) of 82.6% for all populations, 78.0% for high-risk populations and 79.2% for populations with food sensitization. Moreover, subjects receiving emollients more frequently experienced adverse events. Overall, early application of emollients is an effective strategy for preventing AD development in high-risk infants and emollient emulsion may be the optimal type. Future study with well-designed and large scale are warranted to validate our findings.

Automated summary

This study aimed to compare the effectiveness of different emollients in preventing infant atopic dermatitis (AD). The results showed that early application of emollients effectively prevented the development of AD in high-risk infants, with emollient emulsion being the optimal choice. However, subjects receiving emollients more frequently experienced adverse events.