Natural rubber latex allergy: Clinical manifestations (including contact dermatitis) and diagnosis

Clinical symptoms of irritant (ICD) and allergic contact dermatitis (ACD) from gloves and immediate allergy to natural rubber latex (NRL) are sometimes indistinguishable. Therefore, proper diagnosis of NRL allergy is important. Skin prick testing is the method of choice for routine screening, in vitro tests are either less sensitive or less specific. The final diagnosis is made by skin, nose or bronchial challenge tests. Adequate prophylatic measurements are first possible when the diagnosis is clear. All rubber products can cause ICD, delayed type ACD and immediate type allergy to NRL. Irritation caused by gloves has been found to be about 10 times more common than allergic reactions. Although different types of products made from NRL are widely used, this paper will concentrate only on symptoms induced by protective gloves.