ABSTRACT
Atopic dermatitis is a member of a growing class of diseases referred to as common complex diseases. This reflects the frequency of the disease in the general population and the number of genes likely to cause disease. Early genetic studies focused on single gene disorders in which only one genetic locus was found to be responsible for a particular disease phenotype, even though the mutation in each family could differ. The complexity with atopic dermatitis arises because genetic factors and the environment interact to determine disease susceptibility. Therefore, the challenging task exists to actually identify these various factors and understand how they interact.
