Pilot analysis of presentations at meetings of the American Contact Dermatitis Society and the European Society of Contact Dermatitis.

Background: The largest meetings on contact dermatitis are those of the American Contact Dermatitis Society (ACDS) and the European Society of Contact Dermatitis (ESCD).

Objective: To document the topics presented at these meetings and their presenters' countries of origin.

Methods: Review of abstracts from the 2006 ESCD meeting and the 2005 and 2006 ACDS meetings.

Results: Twenty percent of ACDS presentations were on patch testing, versus 5% at the ESCD meeting (p < .001); 15% of ACDS presentations were on local reactions, versus 5% at the ESCD meeting (p < .01); 10% of ESCD presentations were on cosmetics/fragrance, versus 1% at the ACDS meetings (p = .014); and 31% of ESCD presentations were on metals and occupational topics, versus 18% at the ACDS meetings (p < .05). At the ACDS meetings, 55% of presenters were American, versus 2% at the ESCD meeting. Higher percentages of ESCD presenters were from Germany, Austria, and Switzerland (p < .001), the United Kingdom (p < .01), France and Belgium (p < .05), Italy (p < .05), and Scandinavia (p < .001). More papers from Canada (p < .001) and the rest of the world were presented at the ACDS meetings (p < .001).

Conclusion: Significant differences exist between these meetings. There may be the potential for increased joint meetings of these societies.