Tacrolimus in Solution as an Option to Inflammatory Conditions of the Scalp

Keywords: Tacrolimus, Lichen Planus Pilaris, Discoid Lupus, Frontal Fibrosing Alopecia, Folliculitis Decalvans

Citation: Scharf C, Licata G, Briatico G, Pellerone S, Argenziano G, Giorgio C. Tacrolimus in Solution as an Option to Inflammatory Conditions of the Scalp. Dermatol Pract Concept. 2023;13(2):e2023089. DOI: https://doi.org/10.5826/dpc.1302a89

Accepted: September 22, 2022; Published: April 2023

Copyright: ©2023 Scharf et al. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial License (BY-NC-4.0), https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/, which permits unrestricted noncommercial use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original authors and source are credited.

Funding: None.

Competing interests: None.

Authorship: All authors have contributed significantly to this publication.

Corresponding author: Camila Scharf, MD, University of Campania L.Vanvitelli, Naples, Italy. E-mail: kmischarf@gmail.com

Abstract

Introduction: Several dermatological diseases lead to inflammatory conditions of the scalp. Most of these afflictions are recalcitrant and require long term maintenance treatment.

Objectives: We present a case series where topical tacrolimus was used in a solution vehicle for these conditions.

Methods: A total of 22 patients (aged 24-90 years) with confirmed diagnosis of lichen planus pilaris (LPP),discoid lupus (DL),frontal fibrosing alopecia (FFA),erosive pustulosis of the scalp (EPS) or folliculitis decalvans (FD) were evaluated and treated with tacrolimus solution (0.1%) applied twice daily for 1 month, then once daily for another month and alternate days for 4 months. Efficacy was evaluated by an investigator global assessment,clinical and dermoscopic evaluation at weeks 4,8 and 24.The safety assessment included monitoring of all adverse events.

Results: The study included 13 patients with LPP, 2 with DL, 2 with FD, 2 with EPS and 3 with AFF.After 1 month, 14 patients (63.6%) had a good response and 7 (31.8%) had excellent response.After 2 months, 16 patients (72.7%) had excellent response, and this response was persistent after 6 months of treatment.

Conclusions: Tacrolimus in solution,even if not yet commercially available,was an effective and well tolerated alternative for the maintenance treatment of inflammatory conditions of the scalp.

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.

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