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Allergic contact dermatitis to methylisothiazolinone: Exposure from baby wipes causing hand dermatitis
Author(s) -
Boyapati Ann,
Tam Mei,
Tate Bruce,
Lee Adriene,
Palmer Amanda,
Nixon Rosemary
Publication year - 2013
Publication title -
australasian journal of dermatology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.67
H-Index - 53
eISSN - 1440-0960
pISSN - 0004-8380
DOI - 10.1111/ajd.12062
Subject(s) - medicine , dermatology , allergic contact dermatitis , contact dermatitis , patch test , cosmetics , allergen , allergy , deodorant , immunology , chemistry , organic chemistry , pathology
Background/Objectives Methylchloroisothiazolinone/methylisothiazolinone ( MCI / MI ) is a preservative used in both cosmetic and industrial settings. In E urope it is allowed to be used in rinse‐off cosmetics only because of its propensity to cause allergic contact dermatitis ( ACD ). No such legislation exists in A ustralia. In recent years MI without MCI has been used. In A ugust 2010 the first cases of MI causing non‐occupational ACD were reported in E urope. The objective here was to present a case series of ACD to MI occurring in the A ustralian setting. Methods: We retrospectively reviewed positive reactions to MI and MCI / MI from the S kin and C ancer F oundation patch test clinical database. MI was added to our baseline test series in J anuary 2011. Results: In total 653 patients were tested for MI and there were 43 reactions, of which 23 were relevant, based on a history of exposure to MI . Seven were parents of young children with hand dermatitis caused by ACD to MI contained in baby wipes. The remaining patients reacted to MI in shampoos, conditioners, deodorants, moisturisers, a skin cleanser and a facial wipe. Three patients had ACD to MI associated with occupational exposure to hand cleansers. Conclusions These data demonstrate for the first time that MI is an emerging, important allergen in both cosmetic and occupational settings in A ustralia. An important source of exposure was baby wipes, which was predominantly associated with hand dermatitis in parents. We believe that it is important to test for MI , not just MCI / MI , in the baseline series.