Treatment of pediatric localized scleroderma with methotrexate.
OBJECTIVE
To analyze the effectiveness of methotrexate (MTX) for the therapy of pediatric localized scleroderma (LS).


METHODS
A retrospective chart review was performed for 17 pediatric patients with LS who failed topical therapy and were subsequently treated with MTX (12.5-25 mg weekly) with or without oral corticosteroids. A structured followup telephone call to the families was used to assess patient satisfaction.


RESULTS
Skin findings improved in 16 of 17 patients with a median time to improvement of 2.25 and 2.0 months for MTX alone or in combination with corticosteroids. Only one patient had active lesions at the most recent followup visit. Fifteen of 17 families reported improvement in their child's lesions after beginning MTX. Twelve of 17 patients were treated with MTX and oral corticosteroids. There were no major adverse events.


CONCLUSIONS
MTX appears to be a safe and effective therapy for pediatric LS.
Fitch
Pamela G
PG
Department of Pediatrics and Dermatology, Children's Hospital of Philcadelphia, Pennsylvania 19104-4318, USA.
Rettig
Patricia
P
Burnham
Jon M
JM
Finkel
Terri H
TH
Yan
Albert C
AC
Akin
Evren
E
Cron
Randy Q
RQ
D000293:Adolescent; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D004359:Drug Therapy, Combination; D005260:Female; D005938:Glucocorticoids / Q000627:therapeutic use; D006801:Humans; D007166:Immunosuppressive Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D007223:Infant; D008297:Male; D008727:Methotrexate / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D012594:Scleroderma, Localized / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000473:pathology; D016896:Treatment Outcome
D005938:Glucocorticoids; D007166:Immunosuppressive Agents; D008727:Methotrexate