Abstract
The diagnosis of a drug eruption is sometimes easy and at other times almost impos sible to establish. When the clinical history is suggestive and the skin test are positive, the diagnosis is easily made. However, in the majority of the patients with drug eruptions, skin tests are negative in spite of an obvious history. Therefore, it is very important to have a reliable clinical or in vitro technique by which drug eruption may be diagnosed. The relations between the causative drugs, the forms of eruptions and skin tests were investigated from 120 patients for the past five years. Skin tests (patch and intradermal) were positive only in 30%. The polivalent and cross-sensitivity was discussed in view of skin tests in one patient who was thought to be sensitive to various drugs. We have applied lymphocytic transformation and the incorporation of tritiated thymidine of blood lymphocyte cultured in vitro in the presence of causative drugs. Lymphocye cultures from 25 patients who are sensitive to various drugs have been studied. The test have been positive only in 5 cases. Hence, it is concluded that, though a response is demonstrable in certain cases, this is not useful as a in vitro technique in drug eruptions.
