THE EFFECT OF REPEATED OPEN EXPOSURE TO LOW-LEVELS OF NICKEL ON COMPROMISED HAND SKIN OF NICKEL-ALLERGIC SUBJECTS

Nickel is a very common contact allergen, with some reports showing th at more than 10% of women are affected. It is therefore important to b e able to assess the risk of elicitation of nickel dermatitis in such individuals, particularly in relation to repeated exposure to low leve ls of this metal. It has been shown previously that under the conditio ns of a 48-h occluded patch test, some subjects will react to as littl e as 0.5 ppm nickel on compromised skin. In the present study, the eff ect of repeated open nickel application combined with repeated treatme nt with the anionic surfactant sodium dodecyl sulphate has been evalua ted on the hand skin of 4 nickel-allergic subjects. Despite 2 of these being known to be particularly sensitive, there was no evidence of a nickel-allergic reaction following 2 x daily immersion of hand skin si tes in up to 1 ppm nickel over a period of 23 days.