Short-term growth in children with eczema during treatment with topical mometasone furoate and tacrolimus.

BACKGROUND

Treatment with topical glucocorticoids in children with atopic eczema may be associated with systemic adverse effects, such as suppression of growth.

AIM: To asses if treatment with topical mometasone furoate 0.1% or topical tacrolimus 0.1% affects short-term growth in children with atopic eczema. Primary outcome measures were lower leg growth rates measured by knemometry.

METHODS

Twenty 5- to 12-year-old prepubertal children with atopic eczema were included in a randomised, investigator-blind crossover study with five periods: two treatment periods, a run in, a wash out and a run out. All periods were of 2-week duration. The subjects applied mometasone furoate ointment 0.1% once daily during one treatment period and tacrolimus ointment 0.1% twice daily during the other treatment period.

RESULTS

As compared to run in mean lower leg growth rate during mometasone furoate and tacrolimus treatment was reduced by 0.09 and 0.06 mm/week, respectively, (F = 1.12, p = 0.35). Consistently, no statistically significant effects on urine levels of eosinophil protein X and crossed-linked N-telopeptides were detected.

CONCLUSION

Treatment with mometasone furoate or tacrolimus does not affect short-term growth in children with mild to moderate atopic eczema.