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Smoking is associated with combined allergic and irritant hand eczema, contact allergies and hyperhidrosis
Author(s) -
Molin S.,
Ruzicka T.,
Herzinger T.
Publication year - 2015
Publication title -
journal of the european academy of dermatology and venereology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.655
H-Index - 107
eISSN - 1468-3083
pISSN - 0926-9959
DOI - 10.1111/jdv.12846
Subject(s) - medicine , hand eczema , hyperhidrosis , allergy , dermatology , atopy , sensitization , irritant contact dermatitis , allergic contact dermatitis , contact dermatitis , immunology
Background The pathogenesis of chronic hand eczema ( CHE ) is multifactorial. Certain life‐style factors have been suggested as potential triggers of the disease, among them tobacco smoking. However, the few studies addressing the influence of smoking on CHE have been more or less limited to occupational hand eczema. Objective The aim of our study was to investigate the association of smoking status with clinical features like contact sensitization, irritant exposure, atopy and hyperhidrosis in a thoroughly characterized cohort of CHE patients. Methods A total of 153 patients with CHE underwent clinical examination and an interview about their history and course of disease. Results Significantly more smokers suffered from combined allergic and irritant hand eczema (25/86) than non‐smokers (7/67; P < 0.05). Nickel sensitization and palmar hyperhidrosis tended to be more frequent among smokers than among non‐smokers (nickel: 17/86 smokers, 6/67 non‐smokers; hyperhidrosis: 21/84 smokers, 8/64 non‐smokers). Among the smoking CHE patients with palmar hyperhidrosis, a significant proportion had contact allergies relevant contact allergies (16/21, P < 0.05). Conclusion Our results reveal a predominance of smokers among patients with combined allergic and irritant hand eczema as well as with hyperhidrosis and relevant contact sensitizations.