The diagnostics of the etiology of allergic contact dermatitis (ACD) is currently almost solely based on the results of patch tests, which, however, háve several disadvantages. Therefore there is a reál need for an alternativě diagnostic method. The aim of our study was to characterize the potential utility of two different laboratory methods for in vitro diagnosis of contact nickel hypersensitivity. Peripheral blood mononuclear cells of patients with nickel allergic contact dermatitis and a control group of healthy persons without contact allergy were examined and the characteristics of lymphocyte transformation test and interleukin 5 (IL-5) ELISA test were studied as potential diagnostic methods. Our results suggest that both tests might be suitable for in vitro diagnostics of ACD caused by nickel. However, it is necessary to increase the number of patients enrolled into study to confirm this conclusion.

        Key words: diagnostics - allergic contact dermatitis - lymphocyte transformation test - ELISA - IL-5