Sensitization to para-tertiary-butylphenolformaldehyde resin.

BACKGROUND

Phenolformaldehyde resins, especially the para-tertiary-butylphenolformaldehyde resin (PTBP-FR), are widely used in industry and in numerous materials of everyday use, such as glues, adhesives, or inks. They can cause many occupational and nonoccupational cases of dermatitis.

PATIENTS AND

METHODS

Forty-one patients with positive patch test results to PTBP-FR were selected for this study. They were patch-tested with a series of chemically related compounds and cross-reactions were noted.

RESULTS

Phenolformaldehyde resin (PF-R) was frequently positive (65.8%), whereas other compounds gave a much smaller number of positive results. Cases of occupational exposure (24.4%), location of the dermatitis (hands were involved in 46.3% of cases), and possible sources of exposure (shoes were the responsible agent in 12.2% of cases) were evaluated.

CONCLUSIONS

Phenolformaldehyde resins are an important cause of contact dermatitis and must be studied chemically and clinically to improve the prognosis of sensitized patients.