Contact dermatitis due to urea-formaldehyde resin in shin-pads

Contact Dermatitis to Personal Sporting Equipment in Youth

Background:

Contact dermatitis to personal sporting equipment in youth is poorly studied.

Objective:

To review the results of patch testing 6 youth to their sporting equipment in a dermatology general private practice from 2006 to 2011.

Methods:

A retrospective analysis of 6 youth aged 11 to 14 who were evaluated for chronic and persistent dermatitis occurring in relation to sports equipment was conducted. All patients were subjected to epicutaneous (patch) testing, which included some or all of the following: North American Contact Dermatitis Group (NACGD) series, textile series, rubber series, corticosteroid series, and raw material from the patients’ own personal equipment.

Results:

All cases had 1 or more positive patch test reactions to an allergen within the aforementioned series, and 3 subjects tested positive to their personal equipment in raw form.

Conclusions:

Allergic contact dermatitis, not irritant, was deemed the relevant cause of chronic dermatitis in 4 of the 6 patients due to positive reactions to epicutaneous tests and/or personal equipment. The utility of testing to patients’ own sporting equipment was shown to be of additional value and should be considered when patch testing for contact allergy to sporting equipment.

Inventory of the chemicals and the exposure of the workers' skin to these at two leather factories in Indonesia

PURPOSE

Tannery workers are exposed to hazardous chemicals. Tannery work is outsourced to newly industrialized countries (NICs) where attention into occupational health hazards is limited. In this study, we investigated the skin exposure to hazardous chemicals in tannery workers and determined the prevalence of occupational skin diseases (OSDs) at tanneries in a NIC.

METHODS

A cross-sectional study on the observation of the working process and an inventory and risk assessment of the chemicals used. Classification of chemicals as potential sensitizers/irritants and a qualitative assessment of exposure to these chemicals. Workers were examined and interviewed using Nordic Occupational Skin Questionnaire-2002/LONG.

RESULTS

The risk of OSDs at the investigated tanneries was mainly related to the exposure of the workers' skin to chemicals in hot and humid environmental conditions. In 472 workers, 12% reported a current OSD and 9% reported a history of OSD. In 10% of all cases, an OSD was confirmed by a dermatologist and 7.4% had an occupational contact dermatitis (OCD). We observed that personal protective equipment (PPE) used was mainly because of skin problems in the past and not as a primary protection against OSD.

CONCLUSION

We observed a high frequency and prolonged exposure to many skin hazardous factors in tannery work although PPE was relatively easily available and which was generally used as a secondary preventative measure. The observed point-prevalence in this study was at the same level as that reported for other high-risk OSDs in Western countries and other tanneries in NICs. However, the observed point-prevalence in this study was lower than that reported in India and Korea. The results of our study and those of other studies at tanneries from other NICs were probably influenced by Healthy Worker Survivor Effect (HWSE).

Hand/face/neck localized pattern: sticky problems--resins

Plastic resin systems have an increasingly diverse array of applications but also induce health hazards, the most common of which are allergic and irritant contact dermatitis. Contact urticaria, pigmentary changes, and photoallergic contact dermatitis may occasionally occur. Other health effects, especially respiratory and neurologic signs and symptoms, have also been reported. These resin systems include epoxies, the most frequent synthetic resin systems to cause contact dermatitis, (meth)acrylics, polyurethanes, phenol-formaldehydes, polyesters, amino resins (melamine-formaldehydes, urea-formaldehydes), polyvinyls, polystyrenes, polyolefins, polyamides and polycarbonates. Contact dermatitis usually occurs as a result of exposure to the monomers and additives in the occupational setting, although reports from consumers, using the raw materials or end products periodically surface. Resin- and additive-induced direct contact dermatitis usually presents on the hands, fingers, and forearms, while facial, eyelid, and neck involvement may occur through indirect contact, eg, via the hands, or from airborne exposure. Patch testing with commercially available materials, and in some cases the patient's own resins, is important for diagnosis. Industrial hygiene prevention techniques are essential to reduce contact dermatitis when handling these resin systems.

Contact dermatitis in athletes

Athletes face numerous hazards in their daily activities. An athlete's skin, in particular, endures repeated exposure to trauma, heat, moisture, and numerous allergens and chemicals. These factors combine with other unique and less well-defined genetically predisposing factors in the athlete's skin to cause both allergic contact dermatitis (ACD) and irritant contact dermatitis (ICD). As with other cases of contact dermatitis, these eruptions in athletes present as a spectrum of acute to subacute to chronic dermatitis. Recognizing the unique environmental irritants and allergens encountered by athletes is paramount to facilitate appropriate therapy and prevention. This review comprehensively examines the literature on contact dermatitis in athletes. The different types of contact dermatitis have been classified under sport-specific subheadings. Furthermore, within each subheading, both ACD and ICD types are discussed.

Dermatitis under soccer shin guards: allergy or contact irritant reaction?

We report a retrospective analysis of eight children aged 9 to 16 years who were evaluated for a persistent or recurrent dermatitis that appeared under soccer shin guards. To examine the possibility of contact allergy, all had 51 standard epicutaneous (patch) tests applied and three or four additional tests comprised of pieces of the shin guard components. Tests were read at 48 and 120 hours and all were negative in each subject. Irritant contact dermatitis, not allergy, was the cause of dermatitis in these subjects. It was postulated that sweating and friction contributed to the irritancy.

Cutaneous allergic reactions induced by sporting activities

This survey searched for allergic skin reactions associated with, and possibly resulting from, sporting or recreational activities. The goal was to develop profiles of the types of allergens and responses that might be expected in association with particular sports involvement. The data mainly derive from published reports of allergic-appearing skin responses occurring during and after sports participation. The majority of these are single or short series of cases. Some supplementary data from earlier reviews, and two cases from our own clinical experience, have also been incorporated. Given the scattered availability of published case material in this field, we have included most of the reports that came to our attention. We have indicated where the connection between the clinical response and the putative agent or sporting activity seems tenuous. The data are organised according to type of reaction (type I, immunoglobulin E-mediated, largely hives, angioedema and anaphylaxis; and type IV, cell-mediated, largely contact dermatitis). Some envenomations that may be amplified by allergy have also been included. In water sports, allergic sensitivity to equipment (wetsuits, masks, goggles), water per se and disinfecting agents, and various water-dwelling creatures was found. In team and other outdoor sports, most allergies related to shoes, braces/supports and other equipment, and occasionally to topical medicaments and other miscellaneous contactants. Sports participants encounter a variety of potential sensitisers. Of interest is whether a higher level of physical activity may put them at greater risk of becoming sensitised.