Previous studies have shown that when
butantrone and
dithranol were used in equimolar gradually increasing concentrations in short-contact
therapy for
psoriasis the efficacy of
butantrone was somewhat lower compared to
dithranol. To see whether the efficacy of
butantrone in short-contact
therapy could be increased by starting with a single high-concentration directly, 20 psoriatic patients were treated with
dithranol (0.1,-0.5,-1.0,-2.0%) and
butantrone (3.9%) short-contact
therapy as a right-left comparison. With these treatment modalities the antipsoriatic effects of
dithranol and
butantrone were similar. Although the efficacy of 3.9%
butantrone was better than the previously used
butantrone therapy with gradually increasing doses, there was a parallel increase in side-effects. In general, the side-effects (
erythema and staining) remained weaker on the
butantrone-treated side than on the
dithranol-treated side. No systemic adverse-effects were observed in any of the treated patients.