Efficacy of Oral Itraconazole in the Treatment and Relapse Prevention of Moderate to Severe Seborrheic Dermatitis: A Randomized, Placebo-Controlled Trial

Abstract

Itraconazole is not only an effective and safe therapy for controlling exacerbations of SD but may also be used as maintenance therapy to prevent disease recurrence.

Effect of itraconazole on the quality of life in patients with moderate to severe seborrheic dermatitis: a randomized, placebo-controlled trial

“…Therapeutic efficacy of itraconazole has already been studied in many previous clinical trials [7, 9–11, 13]. Although study designs and measurement scales were different, the results regarding effect of itraconazole were almost similar in these studies, and this fact shows the marked efficacy of itraconazole in the treatment of severe SD.…”

“…SDASI was used to determine the disease severity. This scoring system was modified from Psoriasis Area Severity Index (PASI) and the Comert et al study [12] that had already been used in a previous study by Ghodsi et al [13]. …”

Efficacy and safety of low dose oral isotretinoin in comparison with oral itraconazole in the treatment of seborrheic dermatitis among patients attending Erbil dermatology teaching center in Erbil City

“…The inclusion criteria of patient selection were both male and female over 18 years old and had no use of topical steroids, topical antifungals, and other topical agents for at least two weeks before enrollment to the study, and systemic therapy for at least and safety profile in the treatment of moderate to severe seborrheic dermatitis. 12,13 Oral isotretinoin is the drug of choice for the treatment of severe or moderate resistant acne. Conventional treatment regimens suppress secretion by sebaceous glands by reducing their size, decreasing proliferation, and inducing basal sebocyte apoptosis.…”

“…This was comparable with previous studies in Turkey, Iran, Spain, and Brazil. [8][9][10][11][12] Seborrheic dermatitis is a well-known chronic inflammatory dermatosis with remissions and exacerbations; its lesions are more common in areas with high concentration of sebaceous gland. The exact cause is still unknown, however many factors have been implicated, including Malassezia spp., sebum production and lipid composition of the skin surface.…”

“…4 Systemic antifungals such as itraconazole, fluconazole, ketoconazole, terbinafine, and pramiconazole have been tried in the treatment of selected seborrheic dermatitis patients. 12 Itraconazole is the most frequently reported oral treatment for seborrheic dermatitis and the most commonly reported dosing regimen for itraconazole is a pulse regimen generally associated with an excellent therapeutic…”