Topical metronidazole in seborrheic dermatitis - A double-blind study

Objective: To evaluate the role of topical metronidazole gel in the treatment of seborrheic dermatitis. Methods: Forty-four patients with seborrheic dermatitis were enrolled in the study. All topical treatments were stopped for at least 2 weeks before the patients were allocated at random to receive either metronidazole 1% gel or placebo for 8 weeks. The severity score was measured at the initial evaluation, and the patients were followed up at 2-week intervals for 8 weeks. A global evaluation of improvement was done at 8 weeks. Results: Thirty-eight patients completed the study; 21 patients in the metronidazole group and 17 patients in the placebo group could be evaluated. There was a statistically significant decrease of the mean score even at week 2; the difference became highly significant at 8 weeks (p < 0.001). On the final evaluation at 8 weeks, 14 patients in the metronidazole group showed marked improvement to complete clearance as compared to only 2 patients having moderate improvement in the placebo group (p < 0.001). Conclusion: The present trial has demonstrated the effectiveness of topical 1% metronidazole gel in seborrheic dermatitis. Copyright (C) 2001 S. Karger AG, Basel.