Common pediatric skin conditions with protracted courses: a therapeutic update.

This article reviews some of the recent literature on therapeutic modalities and their efficacy in common pediatric skin conditions. Immunotherapy and laser therapy of warts and molluscum contagiosum show therapeutic promise. Bleach baths may help in eradicating Staphylococcus aureus carriage and in improving atopic dermatitis. Cephalexin continues to show efficacy even with increased incidence of community-acquired methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus. More studies have looked at the use of systemic immunosuppressants for alopecia areata and vitiligo in children, although risks and benefits of therapy must be weighed. The excimer laser shows promise as a treatment modality for both alopecia areata and vitiligo.