Tacrolimus Ointment Might Be a Useful Adjuvant for Cutaneous Lupus Erythematosus

Provided patients can use the topical application properly outside the laboratory.

Indications from individual case reports and small, open-label case series suggest the effectiveness of tacrolimus or pimecrolimus for lesions of cutaneous lupus erythematosus (CLE). Investigators conducted a double-blind, placebo-controlled trial of tacrolimus ointment 0.1% in 30 patients with various forms of CLE (14, discoid LE; 11, LE tumidus; 4, subacute CLE; and 1, acute CLE) who had received no benefit from topical corticosteroids and who were or were not receiving antimalarial therapy. The scoring system resembled the system used in psoriasis studies, but with measurement of erythema, edema, hypertrophy/desquamation, and dysesthesia.


At 4 weeks, a statistically significant benefit was evident in tacrolimus recipients, and significant improvement was still seen at 8 weeks; although a difference remained at 12 weeks, it was no longer statistically significant. Of the measured outcomes, erythema and edema responded most. No particular subset of patients or lesion site was associated with better response.


Citation(s):

Kuhn A et al. Efficacy of tacrolimus 0.1% ointment in cutaneous lupus erythematosus: A multicenter, randomized, double-blind, vehicle-controlled trial. J Am Acad Dermatol 2011 Apr 17; [e-pub ahead of print].