Gold Allergy in Ramathibodi Hospital

Abstract

Before the late l 980s, gold allergy was believed to be rare.  In  the  last  decade  however,  many  reports  have shown the prevalence of gold allergy in patch test studies ranging from 0.8 to 13 .0%. The objective of this  2-year retrospective analysis was to determine the prevalence of allergic reactions to gold in the Ramathibodi Hospital patch test  clinic . Gold was a common allergen causing contact dennatitis in our clinic. Of the 233 patients tested, 12 (5.15%) had a positive patch test to gold. All gold allergic patients were females. The clinical  relevance and presentation  of gold allergy  will be reviewed and discussed.