Oral isotretinoin the answer to severe seborrheic dermatitis
A recent study from El-Komy MHM et al has revealed that low-dose isotretinoin (10-20mg daily) over a short time period can help manage severe seborrheic dermatitis, a common chronic inflammatory skin condition that mainly affects your scalp.
Seborrheic dermatitis can negatively impact one’s confidence—with scaly patches and red skin very visible on the scalp.
Unfortunately, the exact cause of seborrheic dermatitis is unknown.
Conducted on a total of 48 patients with severe seborrheic dermatitis—26 of these patients were treated with 20mg isotretinoin daily and the other 22 patients were treated with a dose of 10mg daily.
Over the 6 months of the study, there was no significant difference in treatment response between the groups.
It is thought that isotretinoin treats seborrheic dermatitis so effectively due to its targeted action on sebaceous glands.
The role of oral isotretinoin in long-term control in patients with seborrheic dermatitis is yet to be investigated.
Reference: Exp Dermatol 2023;32(10):1663-73.
