fluticasone and betamethasone-17-21-dipropionate

A randomized, double-blind, parallel group study involving thirteen centers compared the safety, tolerability, and efficacy of twice-daily applications of fluticasone propionate ointment, 0.005%, and betamethasone-17, 21-dipropionate ointment, 0.05%, in ninety-two patients with moderate-to-severe eczema. Safety assessments included routine clinical laboratory evaluations, morning plasma cortisol levels, and reporting of adverse events. Efficacy assessments included (1) physician's gross assessment of clinical response of the target lesion, (2) severity of signs and symptoms of eczema, and (3) patients' assessment of treatment effects. Both treatments were well tolerated and showed minimal suppression of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis as evidenced by morning plasma cortisol concentration determinations. Statistically significant improvement in the severity of each sign/symptom was found as early as two weeks following treatment initiation in both groups. The two treatments were found to be similar following two and four weeks of therapy with regard to almost all efficacy variables.

Topics: Administration, Topical; Adolescent; Adult; Aged; Androstadienes; Anti-Inflammatory Agents; Betamethasone; Child; Double-Blind Method; Drug Tolerance; Eczema; Female; Fluticasone; Humans; Hydrocortisone; Male; Middle Aged; Ointments; Safety

The efficacy, safety, and tolerability of the mid-potency corticosteroid, fluticasone propionate ointment, 0.005%, were compared with those of a high-potency corticosteroid, betamethasone-17,21-dipropionate ointment, 0.05%, in a twelve-week randomized, double-blind, parallel-group, multicenter study of seventy-four patients with moderate-to-severe psoriasis. Efficacy was evaluated for four weeks; safety was evaluated over a twelve-week period. Fluticasone ointment, 0.005%, was not significantly different from betamethasone ointment, 0.05%, at day 15 (P = 0.147), at the end of treatment analysis (P = 0.245), or at day 29 (P = 0.154). Neither medication resulted in any abnormal laboratory values over the twelve-week study period, including plasma cortisol levels. Both medications were well tolerated.

Topics: Administration, Topical; Adolescent; Adult; Aged; Aged, 80 and over; Androstadienes; Anti-Inflammatory Agents; Betamethasone; Double-Blind Method; Female; Fluticasone; Humans; Hydrocortisone; Male; Middle Aged; Ointments; Psoriasis