Abstract: Objective　To explore the correlation between fat-soluble vitamins A, D, E and the severity of atopic dermatitis (AD). Method　According to the Hanifin-Rajka criteria, 61 children with AD were enrolled in this study. The SCORing Atopic Dermatitis (SCORAD) index was used to evaluate the severity of disease. The serum total IgE level was detected by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. The levels of serum retinol and 25-(OH)D3 were determined by high performance liquid chromatography. The levels of α-tocopherol in serum were assessed by high-performance liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry/mass spectrometry. Result　There were 61 AD patients and 48 healthy controls included. The mean SCORAD scores was 44.71±16.06 (ranged from 22 to 74.36). The serum level of 25-(OH)D3 in patients with AD (33.64±7.46 nmol/L) was significantly different from that in the control subjects (52.61±14.56 nmol/L) (P < 0.001). The mean serum levels of retinol in AD children (0.83±0.03 μmol/L) was significantly lower than those of healthy controls (0.93 ±0.04 μmol/L) (P= 0.0313). There was no difference in the levels of α-tocopherol between AD patients and healthy controls (18.71 ±0.55 μmol/L and 19.87 ±0.57 μmol/L, respectively). Both retinol and 25-(OH)D3 showed a negative correlation with SCORAD scores (P= 0.0277, P= 0.0121). There was no relationship between serum levels of α-tocopherol and AD severity (P=0.96). Conclusion　The levels of vitamin A, D and E were not adequate in AD patients, and the level of vitamin A and D were negatively correlated with the severity of the disease.

Key words: 　atopic dermatitis;　vitamin A;　vitamin D;　vitamin E