Clindamycin Mono-Therapy of Hidradenitis Suppurativa Patients: A Single-Center Retrospective Study.

BACKGROUND

A rifampicin (RF)-clindamycin (CL) combination therapy is recommended as the first-line treatment for moderate to severe hidradenitis suppurativa (HS). Although the long-term use of RF requires caution due to the possibility of developing resistant bacteria, only a few studies have investigated alternatives for this combination therapy.

OBJECTIVE

To evaluate the efficacy of systemic CL mono-therapy and assess the prevalence and CL resistance of bacterial growth in HS patients.

METHODS

A total of 53 HS patients treated with CL mono-therapy were included. The efficacy was evaluated by identifying the rate of HS Clinical Response (Hi-SCR) achievers and comparing HS Physician's Global Assessment (HS-PGA) before (W0) and after (W8) the treatment. Purulent material from HS skin lesions was collected on the W0. Bacterial flora and antibiotic sensitivity were determined by bacterial cultures.

RESULTS

Of 53 HS patients, 34 were eligible for evaluation of the efficacy of the therapy. Twenty-one patients (61.76%) achieved Hi-SCR. The mean scoring of HS-PGA had significantly decreased from 3.24 to 2.15 (p=0.001). The prevalence of CL resistance was 15.00%. No significant differences in the efficacy of the therapy according to the presence of CL-resistant bacteria on the W0 were observed (p=0.906). Adverse events occurred in 26.42% of patients.

CONCLUSION

Systemic CL mono-therapy may be a safe and useful alternative to RF-CL combination therapy, and no significant difference in the efficacy of the therapy depending on the presence of CL-resistant bacteria was observed.