2009 Volume 119 Issue 2 Pages 189-195
A 67-year-old carpenter had suffered from lichenificated skin lesions on the face, neck, and back of the hands for more than 12 years. He was diagnosed with chronic actinic dermatitis at a nearby hospital, and advised to avoid sunlight. He was treated with oral antihistamine and topical steroid. He was also hospitalized for a few days, and his dermatitis cleared with a topical steroid and zinc oxide ointment with occlusive dressing technique. Once he returned to the work, he immediately had a recurrence of acute dermatitis on the same areas. He was referred to our hospital in 2006. We checked his photosensitivity and obtained normal results. We hypotlesized that he was probably exposed to some irritants or antigens. He was patch tested with the European standard series, Japanese standard series, and sawdust from pine. Rosin and sawdust from pine were positive on day 2 and day 3. We advised him to avoid exposing his skin to sawdust, and treated him with a topical steroid. After 7 months, the lichenificated skin lesions completely disappeared.
