We have described 100 subjects sensitized to textile
dyes. Of these, 16 had clinically been suspected of having a textile
dermatitis from among 1145 patients referred for patch testing. 41 patients were identified from among 861 consecutive subjects tested with the GIRDCA (Italian Research Group on Contact and Environmental
Dermatitis) standard series supplemented with 4 disperse
dyes (
Disperse Blue 124,
Disperse Red 1,
Disperse Yellow 3,
Disperse Orange 3). The remaining 43 patients were identified from among 746 subjects tested with the GIRDCA standard series, supplemented with the 4 disperse
dyes mentioned above and a further series of 12 other textile
dyes. The clinical picture was extremely variable: most patients had a typical
eczematous dermatitis, but we also observed persistent erythematous-wheal-type reactions, a transient urticarial
dermatitis and an
erythema-multiforme-like eruption. Among these textile
dyes,
Disperse Blue 124 caused most reactions. With the addition of the 4 disperse
dyes to the GIRDCA standard series, we identified 4.8% sensitized to textile
dyes, a much higher figure than the 1.4% observed among patients being patch tested on the basis of their history and the clinical findings; the addition of a further 12 textile
dyes to the series further increased the detection rate to 5.8%. We stress the importance of routinely patch testing with textile
dyes, which can help to elucidate the cause of certain kinds of atypical
dermatitis.