Treatment with house dust mite extract could reduce the signs and symptoms of atopic dermatitis or eczema, reveals recent research from a team of scientists at the University of São Paulo’s Ribeirão Preto Medical School (FMRP-USP) in Brazil. The researchers said they studied the effects of sublingual immunotherapy with extract of Dermatophagoides pteronyssinus, a ubiquitous dust mite, administered to patients in drops for 18 months, to find that the pruritus (itchy skin) and lesions diminished to the point of disappearance in some cases. The randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled clinical study, published in the Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology, says administering the extract in drops helps increasing doses and avoid use of fixed dose throughout the treatment as in the case of sublingual pills.