2018 Volume 1 Issue 3 Pages 219-225
A 41-year-old Japanese female visited our clinic because of repeated erythema on her neck and chest, and facial swelling. A mild steroid ointment relieved the skin rash, but it relapsed after application of the ointment was stopped. Patch tests using Japanese standard allergens 2008 were positive for the fragrance mix, and patch tests of its components produced positive results for cinnamic aldehyde and cinnamic alcohol. These findings prompted the patient to tell us that she used to use essential oils in her daily life. Patch tests of all of the essential oils that she brought to our clinic produced positive results for lavender oil, an ointment containing lavender oil, organic cinnamon powder, and an oil containing cinnamon bark. The precise results for the lavender oil were as follows : 5% pet. and 10% pet. : positive ; 1% pet. and 2% : pet. : negative. The two main components of lavender oil, linalool and linalyl acetate, were negative on both patch testing and photo patch testing. We diagnosed the patient with allergic contact dermatitis due to essential lavender oil, which she had dripped on her pillow at night. We assumed that the sensitization of the patient's skin to lavender oil was caused by oxidized linalool and linalyl acetate, which appeared after air exposure.
