Effectiveness and safety of topical 1% terbinafine versus topical 2% sertaconazole in patients with tinea cruris: A randomized controlled trial

Abstract

Introduction: we compare the efficacy of topical terbinafine hydrochloride 1%, a fungicidal agent and sertaconazole nitrate 2% cream, a fungistatic agent in localized tinea corporis and tinea cruris and to study the adverse effects of these antifungal creams. Materials and Methods: 80 treatment naive individuals with tinea cruris were randomized into two groups of 30 each of 1:1 ratio using computer random sequence generator (www.randomization. com) to receive either topical terbinafine applied twice daily or topical sertaconazole once daily for a period of 4 weeks. The study pro forma included demographic details of patient, concomitant drugs taken, medical history, and physical and clinical examination which record vitals of patients. Results: At the baseline, composite score of all clinical symptoms was 5.11 ± 1.06 in the terbinafine group and 5.61 ± 1.15 in the sertaconazole group which was matched (P = 0.85). At the end of treatment (4 weeks), total composite score was 0.09 ± 0.21 in the terbinafine group and 0.04 ± 0.19 in the sertaconazole group which showed statistical significance (P < 0.001). Table 2 shows intragroup comparison of mean scores of two groups. Conclusion: Terbinafine was equal in efficacy and safety to newer azole – sertaconazole in treating patients with tinea cruris.