Contact Dermatitis: Therapeutics When Avoidance Fails

Contact dermatitis is one of the leading reasons to visit a dermatologist. There are two main types of contact dermatitis which result from exposure to chemicals: irritant contact dermatitis, which accounts for 80% of the cases, and allergic contact dermatitis, which accounts for 15%. Dermatologists must be cognizant of these diagnoses and consider appropriate and judicious use of the diagnostic patch test procedure. Once a clinically relevant allergen is diagnosed by patch testing, avoidance is the mainstay of therapy; however, medical management interventions may need to be employed in recalcitrant cases.