Immediate and delayed onset "skip area" dermatitis presumed secondary to topical phenol exposure

A 21-year-old man was in brief accidental skin contact with epoxy resin stripper containing 10% phenol. He developed a painful, superficial necrotic eruption which slowly extended proximally without any further contact with the chemical, leaving skip areas of normal skin. About 3 and 7 months later he reported spontaneous flares within the area of original contact. Gradual release from an initially formed phenol-protein complex is thought to be responsible for the progression beyond the contact area and the delayed reaction.