Pityrosporum ovale (Malassezia furfur) as the causative agent of seborrhoeic dermatitis: New treatment options

Several studies indicate that Pityrosporum ovale plays an important role in seborrhoeic dermatitis. Many of these are treatment studies which describe the effectiveness of antimycotics, paralleled by a reduction in the number of P. ovale colonies and then recolonization, leading to a recurrence of seborrhoeic dermatitis. in this study 20 patients with seborrhoeic dermatitis of the scalp were treated with terbinafine (Lamisil(R)) 1% solution once daily for 4 weeks, Eleven of 18 patients (61%) were cured and they were still free of lesions 2 weeks after stopping treatment, No side-effects related to treatment were seen. There was also a significant reduction in the number of P, ovale colonies. This may explain both the good clinical effect and the observation that all patients who were cleared of P, ovale were still free of lesions 2 weeks after stopping treatment.