title: Comparative study of 250 mg/day terbinafine and 100 mg/day itraconazole for the treatment of cutaneous sporotrichosis.
abstract: Itraconazole is currently used for the treatment of cutaneous sporotrichosis. Terbinafine at a daily dose of 250 mg has been successfully applied to the treatment of cutaneous sporotrichosis.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  To compare the efficacy of 250 mg/day terbinafine and 100 mg/day itraconazole for the treatment of cutaneous sporotrichosis.
  
  
  METHODS
  A bidirectional cohort study was conducted on 55 patients receiving 250 mg/day terbinafine and 249 patients receiving 100 mg/day itraconazole. The latter patients were matched for age and clinical form to the terbinafine group at a ratio of 5:1. Sporothrix schenckii was isolated by culture from all patients (age range: 18-70 years), who were submitted to the standard care protocol consisting of clinical and laboratory evaluation and periodic visits.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Cure was observed in 51 (92.7%) patients of the terbinafine group and 229 (92%) of the itraconazole group within a similar mean period of time (11.5 and 11.8 weeks, respectively). An increase in the terbinafine dose to 500 mg was necessary in two patients due to the lack of a response, and one patient presented recurrence. In the itraconazole group, two patients required a dose increase and three presented recurrence. Adverse events were equally frequent among patients receiving terbinafine (n = 4, 7.3%) and itraconazole (n = 19, 7.6%) and were generally mild without the need for drug discontinuation, except for two patients of the itraconazole group.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Terbinafine administered at a daily dose of 250 mg is an effective and well-tolerated option for the treatment of cutaneous sporotrichosis.
authors.affiliation: Laboratório de Pesquisa Clínica em Dermatologia Infecciosa, Instituto de Pesquisa Clínica Evandro Chagas, Fundação Oswaldo Cruz (FIOCRUZ), Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. glauciavalle@gmail.com
authors.forename: Glaucia
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Francesconi
authors.forename: Antonio Carlos
authors.initials: AC
authors.lastname: Francesconi do Valle
authors.forename: Sonia Lambert
authors.initials: SL
authors.lastname: Passos
authors.forename: Mônica Bastos
authors.initials: MB
authors.lastname: de Lima Barros
authors.forename: Rodrigo
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: de Almeida Paes
authors.forename: André Luiz Land
authors.initials: AL
authors.lastname: Curi
authors.forename: José
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Liporage
authors.forename: Cássio Ferreira
authors.initials: CF
authors.lastname: Porto
authors.forename: Maria Clara Gutierrez
authors.initials: MC
authors.lastname: Galhardo
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000935:Antifungal Agents / Q000008:administration & dosage* / Q000009:adverse effects; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D015331:Cohort Studies; D004334:Drug Administration Schedule; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D017964:Itraconazole / Q000008:administration & dosage* / Q000009:adverse effects; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009281:Naphthalenes / Q000008:administration & dosage* / Q000009:adverse effects; D013175:Sporothrix / Q000302:isolation & purification; D013174:Sporotrichosis / Q000188:drug therapy*; D000077291:Terbinafine; D055815:Young Adult
chemical_list: D000935:Antifungal Agents; D009281:Naphthalenes; D017964:Itraconazole; D000077291:Terbinafine