Immunotherapy of allergic contact dermatitis

Immunotherapy of allergic contact dermatitis (ACD) has tantalized allergists since the beginning of the 20th century. The term immunotherapy refers to treatment of disease by either inducing/enhancing or preventing/suppressing an immune response. As contact allergy is an excessive immune reaction to otherwise harmless environmental substances (haptens), immunotherapy of ACD should be aimed at preventing or suppressing immune response. The term ‘tolerance’ is used to define a state of unresponsiveness to antigen that occurs under circumstances where nontolerant individuals mount an immune response [1]. Depending on the status of a person, this may be achieved through: induction of immune tolerance to prevent sensitization; desensitization to eliminate existing hypersensitivity to a hapten or hyposensitization to reduce existing hypersensitivity to a hapten. This article will focus on the historical developments, present state and future outlook for immunotherapy of ACD.