Follicular contact dermatitis revisited: A review emphasizing neomycin-associated follicular contact dermatitis

Table 1 Agents associated with allergic follicular contact dermatitis

Agent	Comment	Ref.
Ammonium fluoride	A farm helper who sprayed trees with chemical and had an exudative dermatitis and a postal employee with right foot and bilateral popliteal dermatitis; patch test showed folliculoporal reaction	[2]
Chromium trioxide	A shoe-shiner with severe hand dermatitis, a plasterer who worked with cement (after a cast had been applied to his hand to treat a fracture), and an electrician with chronic dermatitis flared when he drilled through aluminum coated with zinc chromate primer; all had a folliculoporal patch testing reaction	[2]
Cobalt chloride	103 follicular patch test reactions in 853 heavy metal workers that were tested	[3]
Colored permanent pressing sheets chemical	Sheets were 50% cotton and 50% polyester; widely dissmeniated erythematous follicular keratotic papules; primarily on hairy areas with a predominance on legs and forearms. Several washings of sheets did not prevent dermatitis; it persisted up to 8 wk after sheets removed	[10]
Copper sulfate	110 patients patch tested; 8 of 69 who reacted had follicular or poral (folliculoporal) reactions	[2]
Cosmetic creams	5 young women in a 3 mo period; at sites where cream applied following bathing or before sun exposure: extensor limbs (with well developed vellus hairs) were greatly affected	[1]
Dander (human)	Patch test reactions to dander histologically showed eczematous changes in the upper parts of hair follicles and clinically consisted of erythema and papules; they were positive in 120 of 181 atopic patients, 2 of 28 allergic contact dermatitis patients, and 1 of 31 normal controls	[14]
Formaldehyde	A postal employee with right foot and bilateral popliteal dermatitis; patch test showed folliculoporal reaction 2 women developed textile contact dermatitis to a new long sleeved shirt and new pajamas; a hair usually pierced the center of the papular lesions Positive patch test reactions frequently showed a follicular pattern; in some patients, only bright red follicular papules set in a background of normal appearing skin	[2,8,15]
Homomenthyl salicylate	Sunscreening chemical in a suntan lotion; 2 women with follicular dermatitis. One of the woman developed consort allergic contact dermatitis from contact with her boy friend who used the lotion; she was originally misdiagnosed as having recurrent disseminated infundibulofolliculitis	[6]
Methyl glucose sesquistearate	Follicular dermatitis developed to both a lotion and facial cream that contained this chemical	[16]
Neomycin	Repeat topical application on abdomen (current report) and patch test reaction (woman with atopy and left arm dermatitis that flared after applying neomycin ointment	[7,9]
Nickel sulfate	A farm helper who sprayed trees with chemical and had an exudative dermatitis; patch test showed folliculoporal reaction 29 follicular patch test reactions in 853 heavy metal workers that were tested Female production line worker with dermatitis of hands, chest and face after exposed to metals and cutting fluids and patch test positive to nickel; she developed follicular contact dermatitis in her pubic area 2 d after shaving with a metal razor blade	[2,17,18]
Paraphenylenediamine	An atopic woman with recurrent episodes of follicular-based pruritic papules on her face, chest and back beginning 3 wk after starting daily oral hydrochlorothiazide; she had a similar dermatitis after contact with “black hair dye” and positive patch test reaction to paraphenylenediamine (which cross reacts with her new oral antihypertensive)	[19]
Polyoxyethylene laurylether	An emulsifier (and an addition of lauryl alcohol and ethylene oxide) used in cosmetics. A woman developed pruritic follicular facial papules after starting to use new cosmetics; both a use test and a patch test for polyoxyethylene lauryether showed a follicular papular reaction	[20]
Potassium dichromate	61 follicular patch test reactions in 853 heavy metal workers that were tested	[3]
Selenium salts	In glass industry, 4 employees exposed to barium and sodium selenite suffered from dermatitis and/or conjunctivitis; 2 of the patients developed follicular allergic contact dermatitis with papulo-follicular lesions. Patch testing with sodium selenite confirmed the diagnosis	[21]
Sodium tungstate	3 follicular patch test reactions in 853 heavy metal workers that were tested; heavy metal contains about 90% tungsten carbide	[3,18]
Tocopheryl linoleate	Vitamin E derivative added to base formulation of a cosmetic line in Switzerland; 905 patients with papular and follicular dermatitis. Positive patch test reactions to cosmetics and vitamin E linoleate	[4,5]