Allergy and skin infection after use of temporary henna tattoo - case report

We describe a case of a 10 year old boy who developed an contact dermatitis to black henna tattoo. Sixteen days later he was brought to the emergency department because of an presumed superinfection by S. aureus. The infection was successfully treated with dicloxacillin and the allergic reaction with bethametasone ointment and tablets. The use of pure henna is legal but has been proven to be harmful in animal experiments. Para-phenylendiamine (PPD) has been mixed with henna to achieve a darker colour and to decrease the treatment time and is well known to cause allergic reactions.