Allergic contact dermatitis in dermatologic surgery: review of common allergens

With the growing number of dermatologic surgeries performed each year comes an increased potential for patient exposure and sensitization to allergens. Patients are exposed to many well-documented allergens in the preoperative, intraoperative, and postoperative settings during surgery. Postoperative skin complications of allergic contact dermatitis increase health care costs and cause patient suffering. Early recognition, diagnosis, and treatment by dermatologic surgeons are essential to decrease morbidity related to medically necessary and elective cutaneous surgeries. While a specific standard screening panel for cutaneous surgery-related allergens is not well established, we propose several categories of allergens be strongly considered and tested if a patient is suspected of having allergic contact dermatitis in an attempt to reveal pertinent allergens and prevent future exposures.