title: Contact dermatitis: a historical perspective.
abstract: Contact dermatitis is a common skin condition that can have a considerable impact on patient quality of life and function. Historically, contact dermatitis has played a significant role in the evolution of dermatology as the understanding of a relationship between environmental exposure and specific skin disease became more widely accepted. Reports about this relationship can be found throughout the history of humanity, thousands of years ago. The Egyptians were perhaps the first to document this relationship in ancient history, and documentation has also been found in several other cultures and nations such as the Chinese, Indians, Europeans, and American colonizers. The patch test emerged over a century ago and has remained a powerful tool for diagnosing and directing patients. This paper provides historical and curious facts about contact dermatitis.
authors.affiliation: Eastern Virginia Medical School, Norfolk, VA, USA.
authors.forename: Clinton
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Enos
authors.affiliation: Department of Nuclear Physics, Subnuclear and Radiation, G. Marconi University, Rome, Italy.
authors.forename: Massimo
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Fioranelli
authors.affiliation: Centro Studi per la Ricerca Multidisciplinare e Rigenerativa, Università Degli Studi "G. Marconi", Rome, Italy. k.franca@med.miami.edu.|Department of Dermatology and Cutaneous Surgery; Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences; Institute for Bioethics and Health Policy, University of Miami Miller School of Medicine, Miami, FL, USA. k.franca@med.miami.edu.
authors.forename: Katlein
authors.identifier: http://orcid.org/0000-0002-4286-7169
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: França
authors.affiliation: Department of Dermatology and Cutaneous Surgery, University of Miami Miller School of Medicine, Miami, FL, USA.
authors.forename: David
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Castillo
authors.affiliation: Professor and Chair of Dermatology, Director, Centro Studi per la Ricerca Multidisciplinare Rigenerativa, University of Rome G. Marconi, Rome, Italy.
authors.forename: Torello
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Lotti
authors.affiliation: Department of Dermatology and Allergology, Academic Teaching Hospital Dresden-Friedrichstadt, Dresden, Germany.
authors.forename: Uwe
authors.initials: U
authors.lastname: Wollina
authors.affiliation: University B.I.S. Group of Institutions, Punjab Technical University, Punjab, India.
authors.forename: Maria Grazia
authors.initials: MG
authors.lastname: Roccia
mesh_terms: D003877:Dermatitis, Contact / Q000266:history*; D003880:Dermatology / Q000266:history*; D004781:Environmental Exposure / Q000266:history*; D049670:History, 17th Century; D049671:History, 18th Century; D049672:History, 19th Century; D049673:History, 20th Century; D049674:History, 21st Century; D049690:History, Ancient; D006801:Humans; D010328:Patch Tests / Q000266:history*
keywords: Eczema; Hypersensitivity; Inflammation; Patch test; Skin