The Efficacy of Topical Calcineurin Inhibitors for Treating Lichen Striatus

Background: Lichen striatus is a well-known, acquired, self-healing, linear inflammatory dermatosis. The therapeutic approach that is usually adopted is topical steroid, even though the prolonged use of this may lead to several side-effects, and particularly cutaneous atrophy. Objective: The purpose of this study was to evaluate the efficacy of topical calcineurin inhibitors for the treatment of lichen striatus. Methods: Twenty nine patients received topical application of calcineurin inhibitors twice a day up to the marked disappearance of the cutaneous lesions. Results: Six (20.7%) of 29 patients achieved a complete response after a mean treatment period of 2.5 months. A good response was observed in 8 patients (27.6%) and a partial response was seen in 8 patients (27.6%). Of the 29 patients, 22 patients (75.9%) had more than a 50% response without any severe adverse effects. No significant differences in the therapeutic responses were found with regard to the patients’ ages, the duration of the disease and the length of the treatment periods. Conclusion: Our results show that topical calcineurin inhibitors may well represent a useful therapeutic alternative for the treatment of lichen striatus.