- Caucasian, Hispanic and African American children ages 6 months to 5 years with a diagnosis of atopic dermatitis within the last 12 months will constitute the candidate pool for enrollment into the study group. The diagnosis of atopic dermatitis will be determined by the presence of at least 3 major diagnostic features (i.e., pruritis, rash,relapsing-remitting presentation, family history or atopy) in addition to at least 3 minor features (including but not limited to xerosis, elevated serum IgE, ocular involvement, food allergy). Healthy Caucasian, Hispanic and African American children within the same age range will comprise the pool for enrollment into the control group.