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In 2400 consecutive patients at 8 clinics in 5 countries, nickel hypersensitivity was found in 176 cases (7.3%), 19 male (2.1%) and 157 female (10.5%). The incidence ranged from 15 to 38 cases in 300 patients of every department (5.0% Sofia to 12.7% Erfurt). 60.6% of the nickel positives were schoolgirls or younger than 25 years. The exposure time was 3 years, in 49% 1 year or shorter. Most cases (75%) are not occupationally acquired, but due to costume jewellery (31.8%), wrist watches (23.3%), metal clothing buckles (3.4%) including jeans buttons. Job dependent nickel dermatitis is often (36/5 1 cases) linked with wet work. Atopic dermatitis was found in 8.3% of female nickel allergy. Nickel positivity without a dermatitis history was seen in 9/176 cases (5%). Nickel allergy will become a sex-indifferent phenomenon in Europe, because of the changing customs of adornment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article reports on the cross reactions between neomycin and other aminoglycoside antibiotics. between 1982 and 1986 there was increasing use of aminoglycoside antibiotics in poland. The dosage and form of preparation may influence the development of sensitization. Patch test was conducted with aminoglycoside antibiotics on patients suffering from dermatitis. It was found out that patients showed positive reactions to aminoglycocides. 43 patients were sensitized to all four antibiotics and some of them even had angry back syndrome.

Dermatitis from 2-chloromethyl -4 phenyl-6-chloroquinazoline-3-oxide, an intermediate product in the preparation of chlorodiazepoxide, is described in 29 workers at a pharmaceutical plant. All were patch test positive to quinazolinc oxide (1%) and six to 0.05%. In most patients, the face was earlier and more severely involved than the hands. Some were sensitized even if they did not have much contact with it, doing such work as washing the clothing of other workers, or working at a distance of 100 m from the production line building. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With the exception of certain drugs, some contactants give positive patch test reactions less frequently in patients with atopic dermatitis than in all patients with dermatitis. Both among atopics and other dermatitis patients, women reacted positively to most drugs more frequently than men did. In Poland, positive patch tests to balsams are rare in atopics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article describes dermatitis cases from dichloropropane. A woman aged 47 years with no family history of allergy, had previously been a housewife and chairwoman. For 6 years she has worked on the production of various plastic products made of polypropylene, polystyrene, metaplex and bakelite. She had daily contact with three aerosols, Silform AR-I, AR-2 and AR-3. She sprayed them repeatedly in the course of her work on to the mold into which the plastic was poured. After several months of work with Silforms, dermatitis appeared on the right hand only.

The paper includes a survey of issues concerning evolution of allergy to antibiotics. Particular attention is paid to penicillin allergy as this antibiotic has been the drug most frequently causing sensitization since 1960s until today, although the frequency of the allergy is continuously decreasing. In addition, the paper deals with the importance of replacing benzyl penicillin with semi-synthetic penicillins and the impact of these process on the nature of immune response (a decrease in the immediate allergy incidence, an increase in the delayed allergy incidence), cross reactions, the significance of the hidden allergen sources. Apart from that, the paper discusses the most important issues concerning the evolution of allergy to other antibiotics, especially the aminoglycoside antibiotics and cephalosporins.

To avoid allergic reactions to hair dyes, an open test ("skin sensitivity test" or "dab test") is recommended 48 hours before the hair colouring procedure. We have investigated in a multicenter study, under standardized conditions and medical supervision, the validity of this test as a practical method to detect allergy to paraphenylenediamine (PPD)-containing hair dyes in 30 PPD patch test-positive and 30 PPD patch test-negative subjects. A defined volume of a marketed hair colouring product containing 1.8% PPD was applied in an open patch test to the retroauricular area. The grading method comprised the dermatologist's clinical evaluation and objective numerical scores. Allergic reactions were elicited in all PPD-positive subjects with a maximal intensity on Day 2; no allergic reactions were elicited in PPD-negative subjects. Increased severity of reactions by the dermatologist's clinical evaluation was correlated strongly with increasing numerical scores. The "skin sensitivity test" can be considered as an effective method to detect type IV hair dye allergy and as such, as an important factor in its secondary prevention.