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Fungal nail infection (onychomycosis) - Evidence
Evidence on oral itraconazole for candidal onychomycosis
There is weak evidence that oral itraconazole is effective in the treatment of Candida onychomycosis.
- A small open-label trial with no comparator group (n = 44) assessed the effectiveness of pulsed itraconazole treatment in people with toenail or fingernail Candida onychomycosis [Gupta et al, 2000].
- Two courses of pulsed therapy were given to people with fingernail infections and three courses to people with toenail involvement. The primary outcome was mycological cure at 6–9 months for fingernails and at 9–12 months for toenails.
- The mycological cure rates were 90% (29/32) for people with toenail involvement and 100% (12/12) for people with fingernail infection.
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