Between 1981 and 1991, eleven infants (ranging in age from 2 to 9 months) were hospitalized in our department for evaluation of microscopically verified scabies infestations. Six presented signs of Norwegian scabies. All of the latter infants had been treated (prior to the scabies infestation) for long periods with topical steroids, in most cases for lesions suggestive of atopic dermatitis. We believe that the occurrence of the Norwegian form in these newborns was due to localized steroid-induced suppression of the normal immune response.