Background: differentiating allergic from irritant patch test reactions may be rather hard, especially when objective features are not distinctive and clinical assessment is scarcely supportive. Objectives: to describe the main dermoscopic features of patch test reactions and to assess the suitability of dermoscopy in differentiating allergic from irritant reactions in clinical setting. Patients/Materials/Methods: consecutive adult outpatients patch tested at our Allergy Unit during a 6-month period who developed any skin reaction were eligible. At the 72-hour reading, allergic and irritant patch test reactions were captured with both a digital camera and a digital dermoscopic system. For each reaction, clinical and dermoscopic variables were separately assessed, scored and then compared. Results: in 94 allergic reactions dermoscopy showed i) intense erythema (100%), ii) dense polymorphic vessels (97.9%), iii) whitish vesicles varying in size, number and arrangement (95.7%), iv) orange-yellowish patchy areas and crusts (35%). Scores of erythema and vessels were significantly higher in allergic than in the 33 irritant reactions, in which vesicles and orange-yellowish patches were a sporadic finding. “Poral pattern” was observed in 85.7% of irritant reactions to cobalt. Conclusions: the dermoscopic patterns of allergic and irritant patch test reactions significantly differ. Highly sensitive and/or specific dermoscopic features may support differential diagnosis.

Dermoscopy of patch test reactions: study of applicability in differential diagnosis between allergic and irritant reactions

Corazza, M.
Primo
;
Toni, G.;Musmeci, D.;Scuderi, V.;Amendolagine, G.;Borghi, A.
Ultimo
2019

Abstract

Background: differentiating allergic from irritant patch test reactions may be rather hard, especially when objective features are not distinctive and clinical assessment is scarcely supportive. Objectives: to describe the main dermoscopic features of patch test reactions and to assess the suitability of dermoscopy in differentiating allergic from irritant reactions in clinical setting. Patients/Materials/Methods: consecutive adult outpatients patch tested at our Allergy Unit during a 6-month period who developed any skin reaction were eligible. At the 72-hour reading, allergic and irritant patch test reactions were captured with both a digital camera and a digital dermoscopic system. For each reaction, clinical and dermoscopic variables were separately assessed, scored and then compared. Results: in 94 allergic reactions dermoscopy showed i) intense erythema (100%), ii) dense polymorphic vessels (97.9%), iii) whitish vesicles varying in size, number and arrangement (95.7%), iv) orange-yellowish patchy areas and crusts (35%). Scores of erythema and vessels were significantly higher in allergic than in the 33 irritant reactions, in which vesicles and orange-yellowish patches were a sporadic finding. “Poral pattern” was observed in 85.7% of irritant reactions to cobalt. Conclusions: the dermoscopic patterns of allergic and irritant patch test reactions significantly differ. Highly sensitive and/or specific dermoscopic features may support differential diagnosis.
2019
Corazza, M.; Toni, G.; Musmeci, D.; Scuderi, V.; Amendolagine, G.; Borghi, A.
File in questo prodotto:
File Dimensione Formato  
Dermoscopy of Patch Test Reactions Br J Dermatol 2019.pdf

solo gestori archivio

Descrizione: Full text editoriale
Tipologia: Full text (versione editoriale)
Licenza: NON PUBBLICO - Accesso privato/ristretto
Dimensione 262.88 kB
Formato Adobe PDF
262.88 kB Adobe PDF   Visualizza/Apri   Richiedi una copia
Dermoscopy acceppted article.pdf

accesso aperto

Descrizione: Post print
Tipologia: Post-print
Licenza: PUBBLICO - Pubblico con Copyright
Dimensione 297.26 kB
Formato Adobe PDF
297.26 kB Adobe PDF Visualizza/Apri

I documenti in SFERA sono protetti da copyright e tutti i diritti sono riservati, salvo diversa indicazione.

Utilizza questo identificativo per citare o creare un link a questo documento: https://hdl.handle.net/11392/2400110
Citazioni
  • ???jsp.display-item.citation.pmc??? 3
  • Scopus 8
  • ???jsp.display-item.citation.isi??? 8
social impact