Prescription of high-potency corticosteroid agents and clotrimazole-betamethasone dipropionate by pediatricians

Family physicians, internists, and pediatricians are more likely to prescribe combination topical antifungal-topical corticosteroid preparations than are dermatologists. One such preparation, clotrimazole-betamethasone dipropionate, can cause atrophy because it has a high-potency corticosteroid component. We analyzed data from the National Ambulatory Medical Care Survey for visits to pediatricians from 1990 to 1994 and isolated visits at which a topical corticosteroid agent or clotrimazole-betamethasone dipropionate was prescribed. Pediatricians rarely prescribed single-agent, high-potency topical corticosteroid agents in managing patients with skin disorders. High-potency corticosteroid agents accounted for 5.0% of topical corticosteroid prescriptions, whereas 56.3% were low-potency and 38.7% were medium-potency agents. Of the 696,285 mentions of clotrimazole-betamethasone dipropionate, 56.4% (389,920) were for children aged newborn to 4 years; diagnoses were erythematodesquamatous dermatoses, diaper rash, tinea, well-baby visit, and candidiasis. In contrast, for dermatologists nationwide, no drug mention existed for this combination agent for children aged newborn to 4 years over the 5-year study period. Our results show that clotrimazole-betamethasone dipropionate is prescribed inappropriately by pediatricians, especially in the treatment of young children. Pediatricians rarely use high-potency topical corticosteroid agents, but most of their use of clotrimazole-betamethasone dipropionate is in the youngest children, in whom such corticosteroid use is least appropriate. This prescription pattern suggests that some pediatricians may be unaware that clotrimazole-betamethasone dipropionate has a high-potency corticosteroid component.