BACKGROUND: The prevalence of body piercing and orthodontic treatment has increased during recent decades. Such changes in lifestyle may influence the occurrence of nickel allergy. OBJECTIVES: The aim of this study was to describe the prevalence of nickel allergy in a Swedish youth population. METHODS: In a cross-sectional survey, 6095 adolescents answered a questionnaire on their lifestyle and medical history, and 4439 consented to patch testing for contact allergy. Patch test results were adjusted for dropouts by a missing value analysis. RESULTS: The prevalence of self-reported dermatitis from contact with metal items was 14.8%. Patch testing showed nickel sensitization in 9.9% of the subjects, and in significantly more girls than boys, 13.3% versus 2.5%, respectively. Taking the dropout into account, the estimated true prevalence of nickel sensitivity evaluated by test reading at D4 is 11.8% in girls and 1.6% in boys. CONCLUSIONS: The prevalence of nickel sensitization was higher for girls and slightly lower for boys compared with previous Swedish data. Self-reported information on metal dermatitis as an estimate of nickel allergy has low validity. When possible, missing value analysis should be performed to account for dropouts.
BACKGROUND: The prevalence of body piercing and orthodontic treatment has increased during recent decades. Such changes in lifestyle may influence the occurrence of nickelallergy. OBJECTIVES: The aim of this study was to describe the prevalence of nickelallergy in a Swedish youth population. METHODS: In a cross-sectional survey, 6095 adolescents answered a questionnaire on their lifestyle and medical history, and 4439 consented to patch testing for contact allergy. Patch test results were adjusted for dropouts by a missing value analysis. RESULTS: The prevalence of self-reported dermatitis from contact with metal items was 14.8%. Patch testing showed nickel sensitization in 9.9% of the subjects, and in significantly more girls than boys, 13.3% versus 2.5%, respectively. Taking the dropout into account, the estimated true prevalence of nickel sensitivity evaluated by test reading at D4 is 11.8% in girls and 1.6% in boys. CONCLUSIONS: The prevalence of nickel sensitization was higher for girls and slightly lower for boys compared with previous Swedish data. Self-reported information on metaldermatitis as an estimate of nickelallergy has low validity. When possible, missing value analysis should be performed to account for dropouts.
Authors: Jozef Zustin; Michael Amling; Matthias Krause; Stefan Breer; Michael Hahn; Michael M Morlock; Wolfgang Rüther; Guido Sauter Journal: Virchows Arch Date: 2009-02-19 Impact factor: 4.064
Authors: Laura Kolberg; Felix Forster; Jessica Gerlich; Gudrun Weinmayr; Jon Genuneit; Doris Windstetter; Christian Vogelberg; Erika von Mutius; Dennis Nowak; Hans Drexler; Torsten Schäfer; Katja Radon Journal: ERJ Open Res Date: 2020-02-03