Contact allergy caused by natural and synthetic components in medical devices, adhesives in particular

The number and use of “medical devices” is increasing rapidly in several para(medical) disciplines. These devices are used to aid in the diagnosis, treatment, monitoring and prevention of several human diseases. Although they are of great importance in health care, adverse cutaneous reactions, including allergic contact dermatitis (ACD), may occur when using them. Such allergic skin reactions can be caused by particular chemicals present in these devices, adhesives in particular, i.e., synthetic substances (e.g., “acrylates” and “isocyanates”), natural components (e.g., “colophonium”, “terpenes such as D-limonene” and “sesquiterpene lactones”) or other substances (e.g., sulphites). A well-known and recent example are contact-allergic skin reactions caused by acrylates, such as isobornyl acrylate (IBOA), used as adhesives (tackifiers) in glucose sensors (e.g., Freestyle® Libre) and insulin infusion sets (pumps), used by many diabetes patients worldwide. This research project concerns a cooperation between a chemical analytical laboratory (NatuRA, University of Antwerp) and a clinical department (Dermatology, University Hospital Antwerp/UZA). Apart from giving a general overview of contact allergies from medical devices (epidemiology), the main objective of this project is to reveal the (qualitative/quantitative) presence of some important contact allergens in particular types of medical devices, notably by means of chemical analyses, including, among others, gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC/MS). Furthermore, we aim to give insights into optimization of patch test preparations with (some of) the identified substances (e.g., how to patch test them, how to interpret results). Such patch tests are important diagnostic skin tests that can be used in the clinic to diagnose ACD caused by medical devices.

Publication year:2021

Keywords:Doctoral thesis

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