Contact eczema

Allergic contact eczema

Contact allergies can, for example, be triggered by metal ions and everyday substances of use such as cleaning agents. However, the ingredients of cosmetics, (e.g. preservatives) or plants, clothing and jewellery can also trigger skin reactions. The most frequent allergen in the Western world is nickel, as it is frequently a component of e.g. buttons and fashion jewellery. Typical contact allergens can be found here.

Allergic contact eczemas play a leading role in occupational diseases. In particular occupations in which a high percentage of the work is done in a moist environment favour the development of contact eczema. For example, hairdressers, nurses, metal workers and cleaning staff are frequently affected. Investigations suggest that a disrupted skin barrier develops on the basis of the chronically irritated skin and that this promotes oversensitivity.

Irritative contact eczema

An irritative (toxic) contact eczema develops in acute form with direct influence of highly irritative substances (e.g. solvents, acids, leaches or UV radiation) or with long-term contact with substances that although they only have a slightly irritating effect, damage the skin barrier in the long term in such a way that the repair mechanisms of the skin can no longer restore the barrier quickly enough before renewed, harmful contact occurs (e.g. regular work in wet areas, soap, cleaning agents).

The occurrence of acute, sub-acute or chronic-toxic contact eczemas is therefore dependent on the concentration of the irritants (noxes) and the duration of the effect (exposure duration). The concentration of the allergen only plays a subordinate role with allergic contact eczemas.