The use of 0.25% zinc pyrithione spray does not enhance the efficacy of clobetasol propionate 0.05% foam in the treatment of psoriasis.

What Was Tested

Researchers studied Zinc and Clobetasol in the context of psoriasis and psoriatic arthritis in this randomized controlled trial publication.

It was discovered that Skin Cap (Cheminova Internacional S.A., Madrid, Spain), an over-the-counter psoriasis therapy with zinc pyrithione, contained clobetasol propionate and it was withdrawn from the market by the US Food and Drug Administration review.

Who Took Part

PubMed indexes the participants as adults, both men and women.

The researchers conducted a randomized, double-blind, right/left study of patients with mild to moderate, generally symmetric, plaque-type psoriasis.

Patients were assigned to treatment with clobetasol propionate foam on all psoriatic lesions and then randomly assigned to use zinc pyrithione spray to either the right or left side of their body (vehicle spray to be applied to the opposite side).

How the Study Was Run

In design terms this was a randomized and double-blind study.

The participants were allocated by chance, so the Zinc group and the comparison group should start out alike.

As a double-blind Zinc study, the assignments were hidden from both participants and investigators until the end.

The primary outcome measure was the change from baseline to week 2 in the composite score of the signs of psoriasis (erythema, scaling, plaque thickness) for symmetric target lesions.

What Was Measured

The subject headings attached to it are Administration, Topical, Anti-Inflammatory Agents, Clobetasol, Glucocorticoids, Organometallic Compounds, Psoriasis and Pyridines.

What This Means in Plain Language

The paper is a randomized and double-blind study of Zinc and Clobetasol in people with psoriasis and psoriatic arthritis.

The abstract goes on to report its results in about 4 sentences; this page does not restate them, so read the paper for the findings and their limits.

The publication is from 2003 (Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology), a journal based in United States.

More context: the related Vitamin D, K2, Magnesium and Zinc library page, Psoriasis and psoriatic arthritis research.