Why carry out this study?

Treatment satisfaction in atopic dermatitis (AD) patients has been evaluated, but it was not clear how satisfaction affects the desire for alternative treatment options, including changing their doctor or trying complementary and alternative medicines (CAM).

This cross-sectional, web-based survey aimed to evaluate the desire for alternative treatment options in adults with AD from a patient registry in Japan.

What was learned from the study?

A high proportion (91.5%) of patients had an overall desire for an alternative treatment option in our study, of whom 80.9% had a desire for a change in medication, 39.5% for CAM, and 28.6% for a hospital transfer.

The desire for alternative treatment was greatly affected by patients’ satisfaction with their current treatment and perception of disease severity.

These findings highlight the importance of assessing patients’ satisfaction or perception of disease severity, and facilitating early discussions between patient and doctor on their available treatment options, including new treatment options.