Non-Steroidal Topical Therapy for Facial Seborrheic Dermatitis

Seborrheic dermatitis (SD) is a chronic, recurrent, inflammatory skin disorder occurring in areas rich in sebaceous glands. It manifests clinically as erythematous macules or plaques with varying levels of scaling and associated pruritus. Although the pathogenesis of SD has yet to be fully understood, Malassezia yeasts, hormones, sebum levels, and immune response are known to play important roles. Additional factors including drugs, winter temperatures, and stress may exacerbate SD. Current available treatments include antifungal agents, topical low-potency steroids, and calcineurin inhibitors. We aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of a topical non-steroidal cream in treating facial seborrheic dermatitis (FSD). We performed a case series of 11 patients with mild or moderate FSD and a history of several previous treatments without improvement. The patients were treated for 8 weeks with a topical non-steroidal facial cream (NSFC) containing zinc PCA, piroctone olamine, hydroxyphenyl propamidobenzoic acid, biosaccharide gum-2, and stearyl glycyrrhetinate. Signs and symptoms and tolerance were assessed before, during, and at the end of treatment. All of the patients had improved symptoms of FSD (desquamation, pruritus, erythema, and stinging sensation); 81.8% showed an excellent response and 18.1% showed a good response. None of the patients had adverse effects. J Drugs Dermatol. 2020;19(6): doi:10.36849/JDD.2020.5121.