A card player may develop a dermatitis over the hands if s/he plays at a table covered with a felt or baize that has been treated with chromate salts. One of the more common card games at casinos is "blackjack".
The green felt or baize used to cover card tables at casinos gets its color from a dye that contains a chromium salt.
Clinical features:
(1) The person has played cards on a felt-covered gaming table.
(2) The person afterwards developed a dermatitis on exposed skin.
(3) Any moisture of the hands (from sweating, handling a drink, etc) increases the dermatitis.
(4) A patch test to the felt or chromate salts is positive.
The dermatitis can be prevented by:
(1) wearing gloves
(2) playing at a table without a felt covering
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