title: [Pharmacotherapy of allergic contact dermatitis in the time of hegemony of the Summary of Product Characteristics].
abstract: The treatment of allergic contact dermatitis (ACD) constitutes not only pharmacological, but also a moral and legal challenge. Only a half of the drugs recommended by expert bodies for the therapy of ACD is officially registered in Poland for treating this condition. Using medications whose effectiveness has been proven by scientific studies, yet not licensed for a given indication, can be interpreted by law as a 'therapeutic experiment', which leads to a range of consequences for the treating physician. The aim of the study was to analyze the concordance between up-to-date recommendations for ACD treatment and the scope of licensed use according to the Summary of Product Characteristics (SPC) of the recommended drugs.
  
  
  METHODS
  The analysis was based on the recent Polish and international recommendations regarding A CD treatment. A list of recommended drugs was compiled and confronted with the Official List of Medicinal Products that is in force in Poland. Medicinal products both recommended by expert bodies and allowed for ACD treatment in terms of SPC were indentified.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Among drugs recommended by experts for ACD treatment (topical and systemic glucocorticosteroids, topical and systemic immunosuppressants, barrier drugs and psoralens), only some topical and systemic glucocorticosteroids, as well as topical barrier drugs were registered for the treatment of this condition in Poland. On the other hand, SPC of some old antihistamines (cyproheptadine, hydroxizine, clemastine) contained the indication for ACD treatment, despite that they are not recommended by experts and no scientific evidence supports their efficiency in this disease.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  There are considerable discrepancies between current expert recommendations for the treatment of allergic contact dermatitis and the acceptable use of medicines as determined by official product characteristics.
authors.affiliation: Uniwersytet Jagielloński Collegium Medicum, Kraków, Wydział Farmaceutyczny, Zakład Dermatologii Doświadczalnej i Kosmetologii.
authors.forename: Katarzyna
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Kordus
authors.forename: Danuta
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Plichta
authors.forename: Radosław
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Spiewak
mesh_terms: D000287:Administration, Topical; D017449:Dermatitis, Allergic Contact / Q000188:drug therapy*; D004363:Drug Utilization / Q000592:standards*; D011564:Furocoumarins / Q000008:administration & dosage; D005938:Glucocorticoids / Q000008:administration & dosage; D019983:Guideline Adherence / Q000592:standards / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D006801:Humans; D007166:Immunosuppressive Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use; D011044:Poland; D017410:Practice Guidelines as Topic; D010818:Practice Patterns, Physicians' / Q000592:standards*
chemical_list: D011564:Furocoumarins; D005938:Glucocorticoids; D007166:Immunosuppressive Agents