Skin reactions to primary irritants in men and women

The skin reactions to skin provocation tests with 11 primary irritants were compared in 21 pairs of men and women with hand eczema, matched for age, and in 21 pairs of non-eczematous subjects. With a few exceptions, no statistically significant differences were demonstrated in the intensities of the skin reactions between the sexes. The general skin reactivity in tests with irritants seems to be the same in men and women.