Abstract
BACKGROUND: Seborrheic dermatitis (SD) is a chronic dermatitis with periods of remission and relapse that requires long-term treatment. OBJECTIVE: We compared the efficacy and safety of treatment with sertaconazole with standard corticosteroid medications in adults with facial SD. METHODS: In this double-blind, randomized controlled trial, 60 patients with a diagnosis of SD were enrolled. Patients were instructed to apply either sertaconazole 2% cream (30 patients) or hydrocortisone 1% cream (30 patients) twice daily to the affected area of the face. The severity of facial SD was assessed at 0, 2, and 4 weeks of treatment. Secondary efficacy measures included patient assessment of seborrhea, adverse events, and improvement percentage (IP). RESULTS: SD lesions cleared significantly (p < .05) and similarly in both treatment groups (p > .05). Both treatments resulted in significant improvement of SD lesions and the rate of adverse events was similar in both groups. The IP was higher for treatment with hydrocortisone in Week 2 and similar in both groups at the end of the study. LIMITATIONS: Limitations include the small number of patients who were recruited for this study and the lack of evaluation of time to relapse. CONCLUSION: Treatment with topical sertaconazole may be regarded as a substitute for topical corticosteroid medications due to the fewer adverse events and similar efficacy.