Brussels, 26 May 2025 – On Saturday 24 of May, the 78th World Health Assembly (WHA) adopted the resolution ‘Skin diseases as a global public health priority’[i]. This is the first time that the world addresses skin diseases holistically and with tangible recommendations that address patients’ needs.
Skin diseases cover a broad range of conditions, including chronic inflammatory diseases such as atopic dermatitis/eczema, which affects over 200 million people globally[ii]. Atopic eczema affects 1-2 children out of 10 in Europe[iii] and, when it is severe, almost 1 in 2 adult patients in Europe still experience heavy symptoms despite treatment[iv].
The historical adoption of the resolution on skin diseases is a significant milestone for our demanding patient community, as we reflected in an open letter to the EU delegation at the WHA, calling for support in amplifying this critical health issue among EU countries.
EFA Director Susanna Palkonen expressed her satisfaction on the news: ‘People living with atopic eczema in Europe have waited way too long[v]. The resolution comes to fill important gaps for our community. It reflects a comprehensive approach that acknowledges the public health impact of skin diseases, focusing on both prevention and care needs. But this is only the first step: now we need to work together and make this prioritisation of skin disease a reality. We call all European countries to start working on the provisions of the resolution and provide atopic eczema patients with the future that has been agreed upon.’
The resolution puts forward a concrete agenda, inviting Member States and the international community to act with urgency, prioritising the perspective of patients and caregivers. Importantly, the resolution invites the WHO to present a global action plan, results-oriented and based on real needs, while supporting countries to develop their own national plans and strategies. These plans must prioritise capacity-building, digital technologies, enhancing diagnosis, multi-disciplinary care and tackling environmental and climate risk factors. Resulting targeted measures must aim to strengthen access to care, diagnosis, surveillance, education, innovation, as well as the financial capacity to address skin diseases, something that EFA has highlighted in a European Consensus already in 2022
EFA warmly celebrates the participatory and diverse collaborations that have led to the adoption of the resolution on skin diseases. We specially thank our partner GlobalSkin, who worked tirelessly with members like EFA to increase visibility and mobilise stakeholders around the world for this historical outcome.
EFA will continue working with our community of members in Europe to support the implementation of the resolution in the region.
Contacts
European Federation of Allergy and Airways Diseases Patients’ Associations (EFA)
William Natta, Communications Manager,
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Notes to editors
[i] ‘Skin diseases as a global public health priority’ https://apps.who.int/gb/ebwha/pdf_files/EB156/B156_(24)-en.pdf
[ii] Jingru Tian, Dingyao Zhang, Yi Yang, Yaqing Huang, Lu Wang, Xu Yao, Qianjin Lu, Global epidemiology of atopic dermatitis: a comprehensive systematic analysis and modelling study, British Journal of Dermatology, Volume 190, Issue 1, January 2024, Pages 55–61, https://doi.org/10.1093/bjd/ljad339
[iii] Kowalska-Olędzka et al, Epidemiology of atopic dermatitis in Europe, J Drug Assess. 2019 Jun: https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC6566979/
[iv] European Federation of Allergy and Airways Diseases Patients’ Associations (EFA), Itching for Life, Quality of Life and costs for people with severe atopic eczema in Europe, 2018 Sep: https://www.efanet.org/images/2018/EN_- _Itching_for_life_Quality_of_Life_and_costs_for_people_with_severe_atopic_eczema_in_Europe_.pdf
[v] https://www.efanet.org/campaigns/atopical
[vi] EFA, European Federation of Allergy and Airways Diseases Patients’ Associations (EFA), European Consensus Report. The Burden of Atopic Eczema, 2022.