Systemic allergic dermatitis from chromium in a multivitamin/multimineral tablet

Systemic allergic dermatitis resulting from oral administration of chromium with a food supplement

“…Ozkaya et al. reported the exacerbation of chromate‐induced eczema with a daily intake of chromium chloride (150–300 µg daily for the previous 2–3 months) that was much lower than the exposure to milligrams of oral potassium dichromate reported in the previous study by Veien et al. .…”

“…Chromium‐induced allergic contact dermatitis is mainly exacerbated following skin contact with hexavalent chromium but trivalent chromium compounds may also be responsible . Systemic allergic dermatitis can be elicited in these patients by oral ingestion of the allergen in the hexavalent form or in the form of trivalent chromium, that is, chromium picolinate or chromium chloride .…”

“…Ozkaya et al. found a positive reaction to potassium dichromate, but did not perform additional patch testing with chromium chloride. The second point was the amount of chromium that caused systemic contact dermatitis in the sensitized patients.…”

“…Chromium-induced allergic contact dermatitis is mainly exacerbated following skin contact with hexavalent chromium but trivalent chromium compounds may also be responsible (8). Systemic allergic dermatitis can be elicited in these patients by oral ingestion of the allergen in the hexavalent form (5) or in the form of trivalent chromium, that is, chromium picolinate (6) or chromium chloride (7). In our patient with widespread maculopapular rash, the results of the elimination and provocation test with the food supplement containing chromium chloride and the sensitization to chromium chloride and potassium dichromate suggest the diagnosis of systemic allergic dermatitis resulting from oral administration of chromium.…”

“…Sometimes, a systemically administered allergen may reach the skin through the circulatory system, and thereby produce systemic allergic dermatitis, which may result in a variety of skin eruptions (1). The allergens responsible for this clinical manifestation include nickel, cobalt, and zinc (2)(3)(4), but systemic reactions to chromium have been rarely reported (5)(6)(7).…”