In conjuction with the Allergy and Immunolgy section of the RSM and British Society for Allergy & Clinical Immunology we are contributing to this event with the morning devoted to skin disease. With contributions from a variety of sources the day should prove interesting and provide insight into other ways of managing skin disease.

Annual meeting July 3rd, 2012

Due to be held in Birmingham in conjunction with the  British Association of Dermatologists our guest speaker is Dr Jim Taylor from the Cleveland Clinic, USA who will talk on an aspect of occupational skin diseasse.

For details contact:

Dr Jason Williams,
Consultant Dermatologist,
Hope Hospital,
Manchester
jason.williams@srft.nhs.uk

Baseline Series Amended (2011)

Primin: Deleted due to the low frequency of reactions and lack of relevance

Propolis: thought not to add value as a screening allergen and moved to the facial series

Methylisothiazolinone 0.2% aq added: this allergen is now used on its own in personal care products. Several studies have shown that the current MCI/MI mixture misses relevant positive results and that the 0.02% concentraton gives false negative results.

Amerchol L101 50% pet added. The debate about lanolin allergy continues. Several members felt that the addition of amerchol aided diagnosis when there were consistent reactions with other lanolin related allergens.

To improve sensitivity and reduce the risk of false negative reactions the concentrations of 2 allergens have been increased without appearing to increase the risk of irritancy.

Formaldehyde 2% aq

2-bromo-2-nitropropane-1,3-diol 0.5%

New additions should be available through your local supplier of Chemotechnique allergens from January 2012. 

Updated versions (2011) of some of the patient information leaflets are now avaialbale in the downloads section.

Database Update

The revised version adds skin prick testing plus some additional functionality is now available. Members wanting to purchase the new database should contact Barry Statham .

Bespoke footwear

Contact allergy to footwear presents significant problems in terms of sourcing suitable footwear items not containing the relevant allergens. Follow this link for sources of bespoke footwear.

DOPS in Contact Dermatitis

The committee have developed and trialled an assessment format for SPRs in contact dermatitis. This is available for downloading from this link.

Joint Replacement and Patch Testing

Several BCDS members have requested advice on the advisability of patch testing for patients due to undergo joint replacement surgery. Prof Gawkrodger has published a review of this topic that is made available with permission of the British Journal of Dermatology, to view the article (pdf format) follow this link. 

Page modified  Nov 2011