By Lara C. Pullen, PhD
Medscape Medical News
April 1, 2015 -- Ivermectin cream (Soolantra) does a better job than metronidazole cream at treating the type of rosacea that causes bumps and pus pimples, according to a new study.
Papulopustular rosacea is an ongoing condition that affects the face. It also causes redness and flushing.
The study's findings show that ivermectin cream "can help fill an important unmet need for patients who struggle with the inflammatory lesions of rosacea," says researcher Linda Stein Gold, MD, from the Henry Ford Hospital in Detroit.
The results of the study, funded by drugmaker Galderma, were presented at the American Academy of Dermatology's 73rd Annual Meeting in San Francisco.
In a national study of people with rosacea, 46% said they changed their medication, often because it didn't improve their symptoms, Stein Gold says.
Her team did a trial at 64 centers in 10 European countries.
For 16 weeks, the 962 participants used either ivermectin cream 1% once a day or metronidazole cream 0.75% twice a day. Most of them had moderate rosacea.
By the end of the study, those using ivermectin were getting fewer lesions, the researchers say.
This study was presented at a medical conference. The findings should be considered preliminary as they have not yet undergone the "peer review" process, in which outside experts scrutinize the data prior to publication in a medical journal.
This study was funded by Galderma Research and Development. Dr Stein Gold is an advisor, investigator, and speaker for Galderma Laboratories.
source : Once-Daily Ivermectin Is a Safe Rosacea Treatment
