A study of the safety and efficacy of calcipotriol and betamethasone dipropionate scalp formulation in the long-term management of scalp psoriasis.

<bold>Background: </bold>Effective and safe products are needed for long-term management of scalp psoriasis. This study investigated the long-term safety and efficacy of a two-compound formulation (calcipotriol 50 microg/g plus betamethasone dipropionate 0.5 mg/g) for scalp psoriasis.<bold>Methods: </bold>In this 52-week, international, double-blind study, 869 patients with moderate-to-severe scalp psoriasis were randomized to either a two-compound scalp formulation (n = 429) or calcipotriol (n = 440).<bold>Results: </bold>Adverse drug reactions were less frequent in the two-compound group compared with the calcipotriol group (17.2 vs. 29.5%; p < 0.001). Incidences of adverse events possibly associated with long-term corticosteroid use were low in both the two-compound (2.6%) and the calcipotriol (3.0%) groups. Disease was satisfactorily controlled in 92.3% of visits in the two-compound group versus 80.0% in the calcipotriol group (p < 0.001).<bold>Conclusion: </bold>The two-compound scalp formulation demonstrated a high level of safety and efficacy in long-term management of scalp psoriasis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]