Dithiocarbamate therapy for nickel dermatitis

Abstract

Increased internal exposure to nickel can cause an exacerbation of nickel contact dermatitis. Nickel ions are chelated by diethyldithiocarbamate (DDC) and thereby inactivated. An oral dose of about 1 g DDC/day was given to a patient. The nickel excretion in the urine increased about tenfold; the nickel elimination in scalp hair did not increase. The slightly negative nickel balance did not exhaust the nickel content of the organs appreciably with a dose of 1.2 g DDC/day for 2 months. At the end of this experiment patch tests with nickel sulphate were still positive though less local therapy was needed, and the cross correlation between the activity of the eczema and the nickel concentration in the urine had lost its former periodicity. It is therefore not yet possible to conclude whether or not DDC may be really of help in the very nickel hypersensitive patient by reducing the exposure to nickel originating in food and other environmental sources.

Lymphocyte subset changes in blood and gastrointestinal mucosa after oral nickel challenge in nickel‐sensitized women

“…However, nickel blood concentrations vary greatly in different reports. Some authors have reported that allergic contact dermatitis patients show nickel concentrations higher than normal subjects (16), while similar, or even lower, levels (17,18) have been described by others. It is known that many factors, including diet, stress, age and seasonal variation, may influence serum nickel levels (19).…”

Principles and Recent Developments in Chelation Treatment of Metal Intoxication

“…The mechanism is believed to involve increased excretions of body depots of nickel as indicated by increased serum and urinary nickel levels . In most studies, the rate of improvement among patients was, however, not high and a fraction of treated patients developed hepatotoxicity. − …”

“…287 In most studies, the rate of improvement among patients was, however, not high and a fraction of treated patients developed hepatotoxicity. [288][289][290][291][292] In an animal experiment, administration of DDC or disulfiram dramatically changed the kinetics of Ni orally administered Ni, as the intestinal uptake of orally administered nickel was increased by a factor of 10 and the brain deposition by a factor of about 700 in mice. 49 Accordingly, this chelation treatment of nickel allergic patients cannot be recommended.…”

In vivo nickel allergic contact dermatitis: human model for topical therapeutics

“…Barrier creams or/gels, as well as chelating agents, in preventing or reducing the elicitation of nickel hypersensitivity reactions have been widely studied and have achieved some success (3)(4)(5)(6)(7)(8). However, regarding topical therapeutics, topical corticosteroids remain the major ACD therapy.…”