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Seborrhoeic dermatitis - Management
What maintenance treatment is recommended?
- Wash the affected area with ketoconazole 2% shampoo or apply ketoconazole 2% cream (or other topical imidazole) weekly or every other week (depending on the frequency of recurrence).
- Avoid using topical corticosteroids for maintenance treatment.
Basis for recommendation
- CKS could find no good-quality evidence on maintenance treatment for seborrhoeic dermatitis of the face and body. Therefore, the recommendation to use ketoconazole shampoo has been extrapolated from advice and evidence on maintenance treatment for seborrhoeic dermatitis of the scalp. Feedback from an expert reviewer suggested that topical ketoconazole cream 2% is also appropriate.
- The British Association of Dermatologists advises people to continue with an antifungal shampoo once weekly to prevent recurrence of seborrhoeic dermatitis of the scalp [BAD, 2004]:
- A double-blind, placebo-controlled trial provides evidence to support the prophylactic use of antifungal treatments to reduce the relapse rates of seborrhoeic dermatitis of the scalp [Peter and Richarz-Barthauer, 1995].
- Although no similar studies were found examining prophylactic treatment of the face and body, this seems logical.
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