Intended for healthcare professionals

A guide to using dithranol

Neil H Cox
In a discipline that some view as a Cinderella specialty, dithranol is probably the Cinderella treatment. Competition with newer, cleaner treatments creates a danger that dithranol could fall by the wayside even though, when used properly, it can be highly effective. Dithranol (‘anthralin’ in the USA, ‘cignolin’ in parts of Europe) is one of the oldest treatments for psoriasis, with numerous poorly understood effects on DNA production and mitotic rate, cyclic nucleosides, arachidonic acid and glycolytic enzymes in the skin.
Dermatology in practice 2006; 14(4): 18–22
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