Validation of questionnaire algorithm based on repeated open application testing with the constituents of fragrance mix II:the EDEN Fragrance Study

Background: In a European study on contact allergy in the general population, it has been hypothesized that the combination of contact allergy to a fragrance together with a history indicating dermatitis at exposure and thereafter subsequent avoidance of scented products implied a diagnosis of allergic contact dermatitis. Objectives: The primary aim of this study was to validate this hypothesis/algorithm. The secondary aim was to investigate whether there was any association between the outcome of the recent repeated open application test (ROAT) and the patch test reactivity. Methods: One hundred nine subjects with and without contact allergy to fragrance mix II (FM II) were recruited. Volunteers from six European dermatology clinics participated in the study including a patch test and a ROAT. Results: Twenty-four positive ROAT reactions were noted in total including 20 of those 32 with contact allergy to FM II. None of the volunteers reacted to the vehicle (P < 0.001). More individuals with a positive algorithm had positive ROATs when compared with those with a negative algorithm. However, the difference was not statistically significant (P = 0.12). The lower the patch test concentration eliciting a positive test reaction, the more likely was a positive ROAT and the more likely that the positive ROAT appeared early during the investigative period. Conclusions: The algorithm used in this study was not validated but it was indicated in this ROAT setup. The stronger the patch test reactivity the more likely was a positive ROAT and the more likely it was that the positive ROAT appeared early during the application period

Validation of a questionnaire algorithm based on repeated open application testing with the constituents of fragrance mix I

Background In a European study on contact allergy in the general population, it was hypothesized that the combination of contact allergy to a fragrance together with a history indicating dermatitis at exposure, and thereafter subsequent avoidance of scented products, implied a diagnosis of allergic contact dermatitis. Objectives The primary aim of this study was to validate this hypothesis and algorithm. The secondary aim was to investigate whether there was any association between the outcome of the repeated open application test (ROAT) and the patch test reactivity. Methods In total, 109 patients with and without contact allergy to fragrance mix (FM) I were recruited. Volunteers from six European dermatology clinics participated in the study including a patch test and a ROAT. Results Positive ROAT reactions were noted in 26 of the 44 volunteers with contact allergy to FM I. None of the volunteers reacted to the vehicle (P <0 center dot 001). More individuals with a positive algorithm had positive ROATs than those with a negative algorithm. However, the difference was not statistically significant. The lower the patch test concentration eliciting a positive test reaction, the more likely a positive ROAT and the more likely that the positive ROAT appeared early during the investigative period. Conclusions The algorithm used in this study was not substantiated in this ROAT set-up. The stronger the patch test reactivity the more likely was a positive ROAT and the more likely it was that the positive ROAT appeared early during the application period. What's already known about this topic? To the best of our knowledge, a scientifically designed and conducted repeated open application test (ROAT) has never been performed before to validate a diagnosis of allergic contact dermatitis partly based on a questionnaire. What does this study add? This is the largest controlled, randomized and blinded ROAT performed to date. Higher patch test reactivity to fragrance mix I indicated a greater likelihood of a positive ROAT

Rheumatoid arthritis, gold therapy, contact allergy and blood cytokines

OBJECTIVE: To study the clinical and biochemical effects of a low starting dose for gold therapy in rheumatoid arthritis patients with a contact allergy to gold. METHODS: Serum cytokines were assayed before and 24 h after the first injection of gold sodium thiomalate (GSTM). RESULTS: Contact allergy to gold was found in 4 of 19 patients. Compared to gold-negative patients (starting dose: 10 mg GSTM), there was a larger increase in serum TNFalpha (p < 0.05), sTNF-R1 (NS), and IL-1 ra (p < 0.05) in gold-allergic patients. CONCLUSIONS: Cytokines are released in blood by GSTM in RA patients with gold allergy. To minimize the risk of acute adverse reactions the starting dose of GSTM should be lowered to 5 mg. Alternatively, patients should be patch-tested before gold therapy; in test-positive cases, 5 mg is recommended as the first dose

Mercaptobenzothiazole or the mercapto-mix: which should be in the standard series?

Mercaptobenzothiazole (MBT) compounds are well known contact allergens. To detect rubber allergic patients we use both MBT (2% in petrolatum) and a mercapto-mix with 4 constituents of 0.5% each in our standard series. In this article the EECDRG presents data of in total 32,475 consecutive tested patients attending the respective contact dermatitis clinics from 11 centres in Europe to determine if the mix and MBT detected the same allergic patients. We found 327 patients positive to the mix or MBT, or to both. 261 were positive to the mix and 254 to MBT. MBT was negative in 73 patients who were positive to the mix. If the mix had not been in the standard series, on average 22% of patients allergic to a mercapto-compound would have been missed, for MBT this would have been on average 20%. All clinics would have missed a significant number of positive reactions if both compounds had not been tested. We conclude, that both the mercapto mix and MBT are required in the standard series

Report drawn up on behalf of the Committee on Energy, Research and Technology on the development of advanced reactors, Part A: Motion for a resolution. Working Documents 1984-85, Document 1-224/84/A, 8 May 1984

Background Population/based studies about contact allergy are scarce. Objectives To obtain reliable estimates of the prevalence of contact allergy in the general population in Europe. Methods A cross-sectional study of a random sample from the general population, aged 18-74 years, in five different European countries (Sweden, the Netherlands, Germany, Italy and Portugal). In total, 12 377 subjects were interviewed and a random sample (n = 3119) patch tested to TRUE Test panels 1-3 and Fragrance Mix (FM) II, hydroxyisohexyl 3-cyclohexene carboxaldehyde (HICC) and sesquiterpene lactone mix. A positive patch test reaction is considered as contact allergy. Results In total, 27.0% [95% confidence interval (CI) 25.5-28.5] had at least one positive reaction to an allergen of the European baseline series, with a significantly higher prevalence in women than in men. The highest age-standardized prevalences (>= 1%) were found for nickel (14.5%, 95% CI 13.2-15.8), thiomersal (5.0%, 95% CI 4.2-5.8), cobalt (2.2%, 95% CI 1.7-2.7), FM II (1.9%, 95% CI 1.5-2.5), FM I (1.8%, 95% CI 1.4-2.3), HICC (1.4%, 95% CI 1.0-1.9), p-tert-butylphenol formaldehyde resin (1.3%, 95% CI 0.9-1.7) and para-phenylenediamine (1.0%, 95% CI 0.6-1.3). Only nickel and thiomersal showed a statistically significantly different prevalence for contact allergy among the different European populations. Subjects reporting contact dermatitis in their lifetime (age-standardized prevalence 15.1%, 95% CI 13.8-16.3) had an increased risk for contact allergy (odds ratio 1.9, 95% CI 1.5-2.5). The risk of having a contact allergy was not increased in those with atopic dermatitis (prevalence 7.6%, 95% CI 6.7-8.6; odds ratio 1.0, 95% CI 0.7-1.4). Conclusions Contact allergy to at least one allergen of the European baseline series was diagnosed in more than one-quarter of the general European population. Therefore measures to improve the primary prevention of contact allergy have to be enforced

Integrated, multidisciplinary care for hand eczema: design of a randomized controlled trial and cost-effectiveness study

Background: The individual and societal burden of hand eczema is high. Literature indicates that moderate to severe hand eczema is a disease with a poor prognosis. Many patients are hampered in their daily activities, including work. High costs are related to high medical consumption, productivity loss and sick leave. Usual care is suboptimal, due to a lack of optimal instruction and coordination of care, and communication with the general practitioner/occupational physician and people involved at the workplace. Therefore, an integrated, multidisciplinary intervention involving a dermatologist, a care manager, a specialized nurse and a clinical occupational physician was developed. This paper describes the design of a study to investigate the effectiveness and cost-effectiveness of integrated care for hand eczema by a multidisciplinary team, coordinated by a care manager, consisting of instruction on avoiding relevant contact factors, both in the occupational and in the private environment, optimal skin care and treatment, compared to usual, dermatologist-led care. Methods: The study is a multicentre, randomized, controlled trial with an economic evaluation alongside. The study population consists of patients with chronic, moderate to severe hand eczema, who visit an outpatient clinic of one of the participating 5 (three university and two general) hospitals. Integrated, multidisciplinary care, coordinated by a care manager, including allergo-dermatological evaluation by a dermatologist, occupational intervention by a clinical occupational physician, and counselling by a specialized nurse on optimizing topical treatment and skin care will be compared with usual care by a dermatologist. The primary outcome measure is the cumulative difference in reduction of the clinical severity score HECSI between the groups. Secondary outcome measures are the patient's global assessment, specific quality of life with regard to the hands, generic quality of life, sick leave and patient satisfaction. An economic evaluation will be conducted alongside the RCT. Direct and indirect costs will be measured. Outcome measures will be assessed at baseline and after 4, 12, 26 and 52 weeks. All statistical analyses will be performed on the intention-to-treat principle. In addition, per protocol analyses will be carried out. Discussion: To improve societal participation of patients with moderate to severe hand eczema, an integrated care intervention was developed involving both person-related and environmental factors. Such integrated care is expected to improve the patients' clinical signs, quality of life and to reduce sick leave and medical costs. Results will become available in 2011

The Quiet Revolution and the Family: Gender Composition of Tertiary Education and Early Fertility Patterns

It is well known that highly 'female' fields of study in tertiary education are characterized by higher fertility. However, existing work does not disentangle the selection-causality nexus. We use variation in gender composition of fields of study implied by the recent expansion of tertiary education in 19 European countries and a difference-in-differences research design, to show that the share of women on study peer groups affects early fertility levels only little. Early fertility by endogamous couples, i.e., by tertiary graduates from the same field of study, declines for women and increases for men with the share of women in the group, but non-endogamous fertility almost fully compensates for these effects, consistent with higher early fertility in highly 'female' fields of study being driven by selection of family-oriented students into these fields. We also show that the EU-wide level of gender segregation across fields of study has not changed since 2000

Commitment in the household: Evidence from the effect of inheritances on the labor supply of older married couples

We study the effect of receiving an inheritance on the labor force participation (LFP) of both the recipient and the recipient's spouse in a population of older married couples. An inheritance is not subject to laws governing division of marital property at divorce, because it is not acquired with income earned during marriage. Hence it plays the role of a "distribution factor" in the intrahousehold allocation of resources, increasing bargaining power of the recipient. Controlling for inheritance expectations, we interpret the receipt of an inheritance as a shock to wealth. Our results indicate that receiving an inheritance reduces LFP of the recipient by four percentage points, comparable in magnitude to the effect of a decline in health. However, an inheritance has little or no effect on LFP of the spouse. These estimates are inconsistent with a dynamic, collective model of the household in which spouses have the ability to commit to an ex ante efficient allocation. The results are consistent with a model of limited commitment in which a shock to household resources can alter bargaining power. We discuss the implications for reform of Social Security spouse and survivor benefits