Outpatient, short-term, once-daily, diluted, 0.1% mometasone furoate wet-wraps for childhood atopic eczema

Wet Wrap Therapy in Moderate to Severe Atopic Dermatitis

National and international guidelines address stepwise atopic dermatitis (AD) management. Wet wrap therapy (WWT) is important as an acute therapeutic intervention for treatment of moderate to severe AD. Using clothing instead of bandages makes this intervention simpler, less time intensive, and less expensive. Education of patients and caregivers is critical to success; methodology must be standardized. Future studies must carefully describe all procedure components. Incorporation of validated outcomes tools would help with interpretation. WWT should be considered as a potential treatment option ahead of systemic immunosuppressive therapies for patients failing conventional therapy.

Wet dressing therapy in conjunction with topical corticosteroids is effective for rapid control of severe pediatric atopic dermatitis: experience with 218 patients over 30 years at Mayo Clinic

BACKGROUND

At our institution, hospitalization for intensive treatment (combining wet dressings and topical corticosteroids) is a primary intervention for severe pediatric atopic dermatitis. Prior reports of this treatment are limited.

OBJECTIVE

We sought to review the efficacy of wet dressings for pediatric atopic dermatitis.

METHODS

We reviewed records of pediatric patients hospitalized from January 1, 1980, through April 20, 2010, who received intensive topical treatments for atopic dermatitis.

RESULTS

In total, 218 pediatric patients had widespread atopic dermatitis severe enough to warrant hospitalization, despite prior outpatient topical treatments and other interventions such as immunomodulating agents, phototherapy, dietary manipulation, or contact allergen avoidance. Mean (SD) age was 5.97 (4.91) years (range, 2 months-17 years); 141 patients (65%) were female. There were 266 hospitalizations: 192 patients (72%) had one admission, 15 (6%) had two admissions, and 11 (4%) had 3 or more admissions. Mean (SD) duration of hospitalization was 3.61 (2.23) days (range, 1-16 days). Upon discharge, all patients showed improvement. In 239 of 266 hospitalizations, patient records showed quantification of improvement (global assessment): 121 (45%) had 75% to 100% improvement, 102 (38%) had 50% to 75% improvement, and 16 (6%) had 25% to 50% improvement.

LIMITATIONS

This was a retrospective study.

CONCLUSION

Intensive inpatient treatment (with wet dressings and topical corticosteroids) was highly effective in controlling severe and recalcitrant atopic dermatitis. Intensive topical treatment, although underused, is an effective first-line approach for patients with severe atopic dermatitis.

Treatment of patients with atopic dermatitis using wet-wrap dressings with diluted steroids and/or emollients. An expert panel's opinion and review of the literature

BACKGROUND

The use of dampened bandages to reduce inflamed eczema (synonyme dermatitis) is an old remedy. In order to evaluate the current indications for so-called wet-wrap treatment (WWT) for atopic dermatitis (AD), and to compare the different currently recognized methods, a group of experts critically reviewed their own expertise on WWT in respect to the existing literature on the subject.

RESULTS

WWT is well tolerated in eczema due to the cooling effect on the skin and the rapid improvement in skin inflammation. It has been shown to be an extremely effective treatment for acute erythrodermic dermatitis, therapy-resistant AD and intolerable pruritus. Advantages of WWT include rapid response to therapy, reduction in itch and sleep disturbance, and potential for reduction in usage of topical corticosteroids (TCS). However, disadvantages include high cost, the necessity for special training in usage, potential for increased TCS absorption, increased cutaneous infections and folliculitis, and poor tolerability. Precautions to reduce the risks of long-term treatment should include education, monitoring of weight and height and, if necessary, serum cortisol levels. In adolescents the risk of striae from TCS absorption around puberty is high, and WWT with TCS in this age group should be used as a short-term therapy only and with extreme caution. To reduce risks, dilutions of steroids may be used ranging from 5 to 10%. In the maintenance phase this treatment can be rotated with the use of emollients only. Low potency TCS should be used on the face (with a mask).

CONCLUSION

WWT using diluted steroids is a relatively safe addition to the therapeutic treatment options for children and adults with severe and/or refractory AD. Explanation and education is extremely important in the treatment of AD and WWT should only be employed by practitioners trained in its use. Specialized nursing care is essential, especially when using WWT for prolonged periods.

Efficacy and safety of ‘wet-wrap’ dressings as an intervention treatment in children with severe and/or refractory atopic dermatitis: a critical review of the literature

BACKGROUND

During the last two decades wet-wrap treatment (WWT) has been advocated as a relatively safe and effective treatment modality in children with severe and/or refractory atopic dermatitis (AD). Unfortunately, there are still many unsolved issues concerning the use of wet-wrap dressings in patients with AD.

OBJECTIVES

To make an inventory of the different methodologies and to evaluate the currently available evidence for the use of WWT as an intervention treatment in children with severe and/or refractory AD.

METHODS

We performed a search of the literature via the online PubMed database. Reference lists from relevant articles were scanned for additional publications. Publications describing a treatment modality for children with severe and/or refractory AD, which included the application of wet dressings, were collected and evaluated using the guidelines of the NHS Centre for Reviews and Dissemination, University of York.

RESULTS

Twenty-four publications were included for evaluation. Eleven of the publications detailed original clinical studies (study design level 2-4), while 13 revealed expert opinions (study design level 5). Evidence levels did not exceed level 4.

CONCLUSIONS

Large prospective studies evaluating the efficacy and safety profile of WWT are lacking. We were able to formulate the following conclusions with a grade C of recommendation. (i) WWT using cream or ointment and a double layer of cotton bandages, with a moist first layer and a dry second layer, is an efficacious short-term intervention treatment in children with severe and/or refractory AD. (ii) The use of wet-wrap dressings with diluted topical corticosteroids is a more efficacious short-term intervention treatment in children with severe and/or refractory AD than wet-wrap dressings with emollients only. (iii) The use of wet-wrap dressings with diluted topical corticosteroids for up to 14 days is a safe intervention treatment in children with severe and/or refractory AD, with temporary systemic bioactivity of the corticosteroids as the only reported serious side-effect. (iv) Lowering the absolute amount of applied topical corticosteroid to once daily application and further dilution of the product can reduce the risk of systemic bioactivity.

New approaches to topical therapy

Despite the rapid and proven efficacy of topical corticosteroids, side-effects can limit their clinical usefulness. Topically active macrolide immunosuppressants such as ascomycin and tacrolimus appear to provide comparable therapeutic potency without significant local or adverse effects. Data from ongoing studies will be crucial in determining the safety of these agents in the long term, and also their place within the current therapeutic armamentarium available for patients with atopic dermatitis. Enzyme inhibitors of PLA(2) and PDE 4 currently in the very early stages of clinical development also show potential promise as additional alternative strategies to topical treatment and may perhaps act as steroid sparing agents. Having been in the therapeutic doldrums for years, topical management of atopic dermatitis is likely to show great changes in the very near future.