Irritant dermatitis

Irritant dermatitis is inflammation of the skin resulting from a non-immunological reaction to external stimuli due to excessive contact with an irritant (e.g. detergents, soap, acids, alkaline, cement, solvents, chemicals and food). Acute irritant contact dermatitis is often the result of a single overwhelming exposure or a few brief exposures to the irritant or causative agent. Chronic or cumulative contact dermatitis occurs following repeated exposure to irritants (Bourke et al., 2001).