Toxic epidermal necrolysis--a retrospective study.

BACKGROUND

Toxic epidermal necrolysis (TEN) is a severe, idiosyncratic, exfoliative disease of the skin and mucous membranes. The treatment of this condition is controversial. High-dose corticosteroid therapy has been the most commonly advocated treatment, but, more recently, this has changed to a no-steroid protocol. These conflicting treatments prompted us to evaluate retrospectively our protocol.

METHODS

The patients admitted to the hospital from 1989 to 1995 with a clinical diagnosis of TEN were included in the study. These patients were given systemic steroids, prophylactic antibiotic, and supportive measures.

RESULTS

The patients belonged to both sexes with an average age of 34 years. The average area of involvement was 85.62%. All the patients made an uneventful recovery without any evidence of sepsis.

CONCLUSIONS

Treatment with systemic steroids is useful in the management of TEN, and there is no need for a burn care center.