Long-term Efficacy of Tacrolimus Ointment for Recalcitrant Facial Erythema Resistant to Topical Corticosteroids in Adult Patients With Atopic Dermatitis

An open study of a lotion formulation to improve tolerance of tacrolimus in facial atopic dermatitis

“…The blood concentrations of tacrolimus in our 19 patients did not approach toxic levels 11 . Adverse events from the tacrolimus lotion were quite mild and within tolerable levels, and similar to those in cases where ointment was applied 1–7 . Thus, our results suggest that this lotion formulation could be an effective second therapeutic strategy for facial erythema resistant to tacrolimus ointment.…”

“…In the extended study we excluded those patients who dropped out of the tacrolimus ointment study because of irritation of the preparations or those patients with a recurrent widespread exacerbation of skin lesions on total body surface. 6 All patients (mean age, 26 years; q 2001 British Association of Dermatologists age range, 16±44) fulfilled Hanifin and Rajka's criteria for atopic dermatitis. 10 The ethical committee of Shiga University of Medical Science approved the study protocol and all patients gave written informed consent.…”

“…We defined as resistant those patients who developed recurrent lesions despite the application of sufficient tacrolimus ointment twice daily. In the extended study we excluded those patients who dropped out of the tacrolimus ointment study because of irritation of the preparations or those patients with a recurrent widespread exacerbation of skin lesions on total body surface 6 . All patients (mean age, 26 years; age range, 16–44) fulfilled Hanifin and Rajka's criteria for atopic dermatitis 10 .…”

“…Topical tacrolimus is known as a safe and effective therapeutic agent that may lead to a new era in the treatment of atopic dermatitis 1–7 . The efficacy of this ointment in treating atopic dermatitis has been reported to vary from 90% to 62% 1–7 . We identified 19 patients with facial eczema who failed to respond to tacrolimus ointment.…”

Superiority of tacrolimus 0·1% ointment compared with fluticasone 0·005% in adults with moderate to severe atopic dermatitis of the face: results from a randomized, double-blind trial

“…Tacrolimus 0·1% ointment is effective in adults with moderate to severe AD, and clinical trials have shown that it is more effective than potent TCs 10 . In a noncomparative trial in 51 adults with treatment‐resistant facial erythema, tacrolimus 0·03% ointment was associated with marked to moderate improvement in facial lesions in 94%, 82% and 62% of patients after 2 weeks, 3 months and 1 year, respectively 11 . The response rate was 81% for patients with skin lesions restricted mainly to the face, compared with 21% for those with skin lesions on > 50% of the trunk and limb surface.…”