Azathioprine Versus Corticosteroids in Parthenium Dermatitis
Status:
Completed
Trial end date:
2006-01-01
Target enrollment:
Participant gender:
Summary
The dermatitis caused by the substances which come in contact with the skin is known as
contact dermatitis. When such a reaction is caused by the agents suspended in the air, it is
called air-borne contact dermatitis (ABCD). Parthenium hysterophorus at present is the
commonest cause of ABCD in India though in some cases other plants have also been found to
cause ABCD. Parthenium dermatitis is one of the major health problems in dermatology in our
country. Though it has very little mortality, the disease normally continues to persist with
variable remissions and relapses causing great distress and morbidity. Corticosteroids,
topical and systemic have been the mainstay of the treatment so far. Therefore, the patients
with ABCD who have to take corticosteroids for long periods of time tend to develop severe
and sometimes irreversible side effects of the therapy. Azathioprine is an immunosuppressive
drug which acts by inhibiting the T lymphocytes. In our previous studies we have been able to
induce remissions in these patients with azathioprine used as daily as well as monthly bolus
dose, without having to use systemic corticosteroids. The side effect with azathioprine in
these studies were almost absent.
We have therefore planned to study the therapeutic efficacy of azathioprine weekly pulse
doses versus daily azathioprine in achieving remissions in patients having Parthenium
dermatitis and to monitor the side effects of both the regimens.
Phase:
N/A
Details
Lead Sponsor:
All India Institute of Medical Sciences, New Delhi