Treatment of mites folliculitis with an ornidazole-based sequential therapy: A randomized trial

OBJECTIVE: Treatment of Demodex infestations is often inadequate and associated with low effective rate. We sought to evaluate the efficacy of an ornidazole-based sequential therapy for mites folliculitis treatment. METHODS: Two-hundred patients with mites folliculitis were sequentially treated with either an ornidazole- or metronidazole-based regimen. Sebum cutaneum was extruded from the sebaceous glands of each patient's nose and the presence of Demodex mites were examined by light microscopy. The clinical manifestations of relapse of mites folliculitis were recorded and the subjects were followed up at 2, 4, 8, and 12 weeks post-treatment. RESULTS: Patients treated with the ornidazole-based regimen showed an overall effective rate of 94.0%. Additionally, at the 2, 4, 8, and 12-week follow-up, these patients had significantly lower rates of Demodex mite relapse and new lesion occurrence compared with patients treated with the metronidazole-based regimen (P < 0.05). CONCLUSION: Sequential therapy using ornidazole, betamethasone, and recombinant bovine basic fibroblast growth factor (rbFGF) gel is highly effective for treating mites folliculitis.