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Outbreak of methylisothiazolinone allergy targeting those aged ≥40 years
Author(s) -
McFadden John P.,
Mann Jack,
White Jonathan M. L.,
Banerjee Piu,
White Ian R.
Publication year - 2013
Publication title -
contact dermatitis
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.524
H-Index - 96
eISSN - 1600-0536
pISSN - 0105-1873
DOI - 10.1111/cod.12093
Subject(s) - medicine , white (mutation) , biochemistry , gene , chemistry
Methylisothiazolinone (MI) has been used in a combination of 1:3 with methylchloroisothiazolinone (MCI) since the 1980s. It has been used in toiletries, household products, wall paints, and industry (1). This combination has represented an important cause of preservative contact allergy with regard to its use in consumer products and paints. The MCI/MI combination has been regulated to an upper limit of 15 ppm in household products and cosmetics (i.e. MI concentration of 3.75 ppm) (2). In 2000, MI, which is claimed not to be as potent a sensitizer as MCI, was released onto the market as a single-agent preservative. A published EC3 value of between 0.4 and 2.2, depending upon the vehicle, categorized MI as a ‘moderate’ sensitizer (3). MI was first used in industrial products and paints, and the first case of allergic contact dermatitis caused by MI through occupational exposure was noted in 2004 (4). In 2005, MI was permitted for use in cosmetics in the United States and Europe at up to 100 ppm, representing a 27-fold increase in the permitted concentration of MI. It is unclear how soon after 2005 MI was incorporated into cosmetics as a single agent, but the first cases of allergic contact dermatitis caused by MI through cosmetic exposure were reported in 2010 (5). In that year we incorporated MI, at a patch test concentration of 0.05% aqua, into our cosmetic/face patch test series.