Abstract
Fifteen cases of contact dermatitis and 3 of irritant contact conjunctivitis due to multifunctional acrylic monomers in printing inks are described. Seven with dermatitis were sensitized to pentaerythritol triacrylate but evidenced no cross-reactivity to methyl methacrylate. The other 8 cases of dermatitis were irritant. Pentaerythritol triacrylate was shown experimentally to be a cutaneous sensitizer for guinea pigs and man. Multi-functional acrylates should be handled with minimal skin contact, to avoid cutaneous problems.