Topical metronidazole in seborrheic dermatitis--a double-blind study.
OBJECTIVE
To evaluate the role of topical metronidazole gel in the treatment of seborrheic dermatitis.


METHODS
Forty-four patients with seborrheic dermatitis were enrolled in the study. All topical treatments were stopped for at least 2 weeks before the patients were allocated at random to receive either metronidazole 1% gel or placebo for 8 weeks. The severity score was measured at the initial evaluation, and the patients were followed up at 2-week intervals for 8 weeks. A global evaluation of improvement was done at 8 weeks.


RESULTS
Thirty-eight patients completed the study; 21 patients in the metronidazole group and 17 patients in the placebo group could be evaluated. There was a statistically significant decrease of the mean score even at week 2; the difference became highly significant at 8 weeks (p < 0.001). On the final evaluation at 8 weeks, 14 patients in the metronidazole group showed marked improvement to complete clearance as compared to only 2 patients having moderate improvement in the placebo group (p < 0.001).


CONCLUSIONS
The present trial has demonstrated the effectiveness of topical 1% metronidazole gel in seborrheic dermatitis.
Department of Dermatology, Postgraduate Institute of Medical Education and Research, Chandigarh, India. dprs@vsnl.com
D
D
Parsad
R
R
Pandhi
K S
KS
Negi
B
B
Kumar
D000287:Administration, Topical; D000328:Adult; D000890:Anti-Infective Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D012628:Dermatitis, Seborrheic / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000473:pathology; D004311:Double-Blind Method; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008795:Metronidazole / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D012720:Severity of Illness Index; D012867:Skin / Q000187:drug effects / Q000473:pathology; D016896:Treatment Outcome
D000890:Anti-Infective Agents; D008795:Metronidazole