Allopurinol in the treatment of cutaneous sarcoidosis

Several reports more than ten years ago provided evidence that allopurinol may be effective for cutaneous sarcoidosis. We therefore treated two patients with histologically confirmed scar sarcoidosis and two with nodular sarcoidosis. A daily dosage of 300 mg allopurinol was given over a period of 4-7 months as single drug therapy. In both patients with scar sarcoidosis, the skin manifestations completely regressed while in the patients with nodular sarcoidosis there was significant improvement. The concomittant pulmonary involvement in two patients was unpredictable,in one patient improved while the other was deteriorated. The mode of action is still unclear but because of the positive results and the low rate of side effects, allopurinol seems a reasonable agent for treating cutaneous sarcoidosis.