Wiley-Blackwell Toxicology of Contact Dermatitis: Allergy, Irritancy and Urticaria (Current Toxicology)

Contact dermatitis is an inflammatory skin reaction caused by contact with chemicals or other agents. It is a widespread and common cause of morbidity, and moreover it is one of the major causes of occupational disease and time off work. This volume provides a comprehensive examination of the three types of contact dermatitis: that due to irritation, that due to allergy and that due to urticaria. Chapters discuss the mechanisms of contact dermatitis, alternative text models, and detailed studies on risk assessment. From the Back Cover Current Toxicology Series Series Editors Diana Anderson, BIBRA Toxicology International, Surrey, UK Michael D Waters, Consultant, Chapel Hill, NC, USA Timothy C Marrs, Department of Health, London, UK Toxicology of Contact Dermatitis Allergy, Irritancy and Urticaria David Basketter, Unilever R&D, Safety & Environmental Assurance Centre Toxicology Unit, Bedford, UK Frank Gerberick, Proctor & Gamble, Miami Valley Laboratories, Cincinnati, OH, USA Ian Kimber, ZENECA Pharmaceuticals, Central Toxicology Laboratory, Macclesfield, UK Carolyn Willis, Department of Dermatology, Amersham Hospital, Amersham, UK The contact dermatoses represent a family of clinical conditions of the skin which affect a surprising number of people. These diseases cover skin irritation, allergic contact dermatitis (skin sensitisation) and the urticarias (both immunologic and non-immunologic). They arise from contact with chemicals at work (contact dermatitis is the major cause of occupational health problems) and from consumer contact with chemicals in the home (in cosmetics, household products, medicaments, pesticides, and so on). The aim of this book is to describe in detail the latest understanding of the pathophysiological mechanisms involved in the three main aspects of contact dermatitis (irritation, allergy and urticaria), to then encapsulate modern approaches to the evaluation of chemical hazards in this area by critically reviewing the test methodologies involved, and finally to illustrate how the risks presented may be assessed. This last point is a critical area, since methods for the identification of these hazards (at least for skin irritation and sensitisation) have been available for some years. However, the understanding of how to measure the potency of these hazards and so enable a proper risk assessment is only now becoming a more tractable and thus transparent activity. Better and more consistent risk assessments are the optimal route to the reduction of the morbidity presented by the skin disorders described in this book. This timely book is essential reading for toxicologists, dermatologists, occupational health specialists, allergologists and those with an interest in risk assessment and safety evaluation.