European Surveillance System on Contact Allergies (ESSCA): polysensitization, 2009–2014

Background Polysensitization, defined as being allergic to three or more haptens from the European baseline series, is considered to reflect increased susceptibility to developing a contact allergy, and is likely to be associated with an impaired quality of life. Objectives To evaluate the prevalenc...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published in:Contact dermatitis 2018-06, Vol.78 (6), p.373-385
Main Authors: Dittmar, Daan, Uter, Wolfgang, Bauer, Andrea, Fortina, Ana B., Bircher, Andreas J., Czarnecka‐Operacz, Magdalena, Dugonik, Aleksandra, Elsner, Peter, Gallo, Rosella, Ghaffar, Sharizan A., Giménez‐Arnau, Anna, Johnston, Graham A., Kręcisz, Beata, Filon, Francesca L., Rustemeyer, Thomas, Sadowska‐Przytocka, Anna, Sánchez‐Pérez, Javier, Schnuch, Axel, Simon, Dagmar, Spiewak, Radoslaw, Spring, Philipp, Corradin, Maria T., Valiukevičienė, Skaidra, Vok, Marko, Weisshaar, Elke, Wilkinson, Mark, Schuttelaar, Marie L., Aberer, Werner, Ballmer‐Weber, Barbara, Grabbe, Jürgen, Beiteke, Ulrike, Brasch, Jochen, Fuchs, Thomas, John, Swen Malte, Mahler, Vera, Pesonen, Maria, Jolanki, Riitta, Rantanen, Tapio, Armario‐Hita, José Carlos, Fernández‐Redondo, Virginia, García‐Gavín, Juan, Mercader, Pedro, Ruiz, Inmaculada, Silvestre, Juan Fco, Balato, Anna, Ayala, Fabio, Peserico, Andrea, Sliuziaviciene, Gondinga, Kieć‐Świerczyńska, Marta, Kmecl, Tanja, Pandurovic, Maja Kalac, Kecelj, Nada, Lunder, Tomaž, Simončič Godnič, Mojca, Chowdhury, Mahbub M. U., Cooper, Susan M., English, John S. C., Cousen, Philippa, Horne, Helen L., Gawkrodger, David J., Holden, Catherine, Sabroe, Ruth, Green, Cathy M., King, Codagh M., Ormerod, Anthony D., Samson, Jane E., Statham, Barry, Stone, Natalie, White, Ian
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Allergens
Allergies
clinical epidemiology
contact allergy
Dermatitis
Haptens
patch test
polysensitization
Quality of life
Risk factors
Surveillance
Citations: Items that this one cites
Items that cite this one
Online Access:Get full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:Background Polysensitization, defined as being allergic to three or more haptens from the European baseline series, is considered to reflect increased susceptibility to developing a contact allergy, and is likely to be associated with an impaired quality of life. Objectives To evaluate the prevalences of polysensitization across Europe and to analyse factors associated with polysensitization. Methods Patch test data collected by the European Surveillance System on Contact Allergies (ESSCA; www.essca‐dc.org) in consecutively patch tested patients from January 2009 to December 2014, comprising 11 countries and 57 departments, were retrospectively analysed. Results A total of 86 416 patients were available for analysis, showing a standardized prevalence of polysensitization of 7.02%, ranging from 12.7% (Austria) to 4.6% (Italy). Allergen pairs with the strongest association are reported for the total population, for South Europe, and for North/Central Europe. Overall, polysensitized patients showed a higher percentage of extreme (+++) positive patch test reactions than oligosensitized patients. Female sex, occupational dermatitis and age > 40 years were risk factors for polysensitization. Conclusions The varying prevalences of polysensitization across Europe most likely reflect differences in patient characteristics and referral patterns between departments. Known risk factors for polysensitization are confirmed in a European dermatitis population.
ISSN:0105-1873
1600-0536
DOI:10.1111/cod.12966