Whether Weather's Wetter and Whither Skin Disease

We can expect changes to the incidence of skin and skin-related disorders associated with El Niño.

El Niño is the warm phase of the El Niño Southern Oscillation. An unusually high temperature at the Pacific Ocean surface affects climate all over the world. It also affects people, animals, parasites, disease prevalence, and infectious agents. In the past 3 decades, global warming has increased the frequency and intensity of El Niño weather patterns. These changes have been associated with changes in the incidence of diseases — for example, diarrhea, cholera, Rift Valley fever, and hantavirus pulmonary syndrome. Does El Niño warming affect the incidences of skin diseases, too?

Investigators used databases to search for articles written on the subject since 1990. El Niño was associated with increases in cases of actinic keratoses, tinea, pit…

Reviewing Author

Mark V. Dahl, MD

Disclosures

Consultant / Advisory board Ulthera, Inc.; AuBio LifeSciences, LLC; Paris Therapeutics

Equity Elorac, Inc.; Makucell, Inc.; Paris Therapeutics

Editorial boards UpToDate

Leadership positions in professional societiesNational Rosacea Society (Chairman, Medical Board)