Infantile flexural seborrhoeic dermatitis. Neither biotin nor essential fatty acid deficiency.

ABSTRACT

The allegedly beneficial effect of biotin in the treatment of infantile 'flexural' seborrhoeic dermatitis was evaluated in a double-blind controlled study. No beneficial effect could be confirmed, and it is therefore unlikely that this disease is caused by biotin deficiency. Nor could this scaly dermatitis be ascribed to an essential fatty acid deficiency. Serum and adipose tissue fatty acids resembled each other and reflected the fatty acid composition of the diet.