Joan Manuel Vilaplana

Contact dermatitis from cocamidopropyl betaine

In the last 5 months, 706 patients have been studied in our Allergy Department. 93 (83 women and 10 men) were provisionally diagnosed as having cosmetic contact dermatitis. 4 women were positive to cocamidopropyl betaine (CPB) 1.0% aq. (Chemotechnique). This surfactant is mostly used in hair shampoos and skin cleansers. 2 of the sensitized women consulted for scalp itch and erythema on the forehead, ears and neck area, and admitted to having used a new hair shampoo bought in the DDR. In 2 other sensitized women (one presenting eczema on the face, the other on face and neck), the suspected cosmetics were face cleansers. The manufacturer confirmed the existence of CPB in the face creams. In spite of being widely used in shampoos and cleansing creams, references to sensitization to this substance are rare.

Did Pyrenean glaciers dance to the beat of global climatic events? Evidence from the Würmian sequence stratigraphy of an ice-dammed palaeolake depocentre in Andorra

Abstract The ice-marginal depositional sequence of La Massana provides a chronostratigraphic benchmark for reconstructing the Würmian glacial evolution of the Valira catchment in Andorra, SE Pyrenees. The sedimentary record of Andorra confirms the asynchronous chronology of glacier fluctuations in different parts of the Pyrenean mountain range. A major ice recession occurred at the end of Marine Isotope Stage (MIS) 4. High magnitude valley-glacier fluctuations during MIS 3 constitute another important finding. Major readvances occurred toward the end of MIS 3, whereas MIS 2 (in particular, the global Last Glacial Maximum, or LGM) featured sharp contrasts in ice recession rates between Pyrenean valleys. Substantial distances separated MIS 4 glacier fronts (the Würmian maximum ice extent, or MIE) from those reached during the global LGM, in contrast to situations in the eastern Pyrenees, where Würmian MIE and global LGM ice fronts nearly coincided. Overall, the Valira glaciers reveal patterns that are more similar to those recorded elsewhere in the western and central Pyrenees than in the eastern Pyrenees. The rapid fluctuations recorded by Andorran glaciers during the second half of the Würm also suggest a response to global forcing events such as Heinrich events in the North Atlantic.

Swimming pool contact dermatitis caused by 1-bromo-3-chloro-5,5-dimethyl hydantoin.

Background. Bromo‐3‐chloro‐5,5‐dimethylhydantoin (BCDMH) is a chemical used as a disinfectant for recreational water. BCDMH was described as being responsible for an epidemic of irritant contact dermatitis in the UK (1983), and its sensitizing capacity was also discussed.

Results of serial patch testing with Javelle water (sodium hypochlorite solution)

224 (110 male, 114 female) consecutive patients attending our Allergy Department have been additionally patch tested with 3 different commercial Spanish bleaches (50 g of active chlorine per liter in watery solution; pH 12.5), for household use. 3 different solutions in distilled water (10%, 2% and 0.5 > %) were prepared from these bleaches daily. As stated by previous authors, sodium hypochlorite 0.5% solution in water is the adequate concentration for testing bleach. In general, the amount of allergen applied as patch test, does not influence results. In 3 consecutive serial patch test studies with bleach, we have found that, on account of the alkalinity of0.5% aq. sodium hydrochlorite solution, the quantity of liquid applied as patch test must not exceed 0.1 %. Otherwise, an elevated number of irritative responses are obtained.