European Surveillance System on Contact Allergies (ESSCA)

Background Irritant contact dermatitis (ICD) is caused by the acute locally toxic effect of a strong irritant, or the cumulative exposure to various weaker physical and/or chemical irritants. Objectives To describe characteristics of patients with ICD in the population patch tested in the European Surveillance System on Contact Allergies (ESSCA; www.essca-dc.org) database. Methods Data collected by the ESSCA in consecutively patch tested patients from January 2009 to December 2018 were analyzed. Results Of the 68 072 patients, 8702 patients were diagnosed with ICD (without concomitant allergic contact dermatitis [ACD]). Hand and face were the most reported anatomical sites, and 45.7% of the ICD was occupational ICD (OICD). The highest proportions of OICD were found in metal turners, bakers, pastry-cooks and confectionery makers. Among patients diagnosed with ICD, 45% were found sensitized with no relevance for the current disease. Conclusions The hands were mainly involved in OICD also in the subgroup of contact dermatitis patients, in whom relevant contact sensitization had been ruled out, emphasizing the need for limiting irritant exposures. However, in difficult to treat contact dermatitis, unrecognized contact allergy, or unrecognized clinical relevance of identified allergies owing to incomplete or wrong product ingredient information must always be considered. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.