Comparison of the efficacy of tacrolimus 0.1% ointment vs calcipotriol/betamethasone in combination with NBUVB in treatment of vitiligo

Abstract

Purpose: Vitiligo is an idiopathic depigmenting skin disorder. The study compares the efficacy of topical tacrolimus 0.1% with calcipotriol/betamethasone dipropionate in vitiligo patients receiving NB-UVB treatment.

Materials and methods: Forty-one adult patients with generalized type vitiligo were recruited. Patients were assigned to phototherapy and then classified into either group one (20 patients), receiving calcipotriol/betamethasone dipropionate cream (D group), or group two (21 patients), receiving tacrolimus 0.1% ointment (T group). They were followed-up at 3 and 6 months.

Results: The D group witnessed an increase in the repigmentation area from 35.4% in the third month to 54.7% in the sixth month (p = 0.001) and the T group from 32.2% to 45.6% (p = 0.011). However, the differences between the treatment groups were not statistically significant. Body sites demonstrated different levels of improvement ranging from the highest in the face to the lowest in the Hand & Feet with the other body sites in between. A negative correlation was identified between the duration since diagnosis and the response to D treatment (3 months: r = −0.612, p = 0.007; 6 months: r = −0.755, p = 0.001).

Conclusions: Although both combinations are efficacious, they did not significantly differ in efficacy at three and six months follow-up points.

Clinical trial registration: The study was registered at clinicaltrials.gov (NCT04440371).

Keywords:

• Vitiligo
• tacrolimus 0.1% ointment
• calcipotriol/betamethasone
• nBUVB
• efficacy

Author contributions

Conceptualization, D.S.,F.Q.,J.M., Methodology, D.S.,S.B.,A.F.,S.S., Formal Analysis S.B.,A.F.,S.S., Data collection D.S.,F.Q.,J.M.,A.T.,D.Sa., Resources D.S.,F.Q.,J.M.,A.T.,D.Sa., Writing original manuscript D.S.,F.Q.,J.M.,S.B.,A.F.,S.S.,A.T.,D.Sa., Review & Editing D.S.,F.Q.,J.M.,S.B.,A.F.,S.S.,A.T.,D.Sa., Supervision of study conduct D.S.,F.Q., Project administration and funding D.S., F.Q.

Disclosure statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest in relation to this study.

Data availability statement

The data that support the findings of this study are not openly available due to reasons of sensitivity and are available from the corresponding author upon request.

Additional information

Funding

The study was supported by a research grant from the deanship of Research at Jordan University of Science and Technology, grant number [20170141].