ClinicalTrials.gg
CompletedNCT00507832CASM981CDE21Updated Jul 7, 2010

Evaluation of the Antipruritic Effect of Elidel (Pimecrolimus) in Non-atopic Pruritic Disease

A Phase 2 interventional study of Pimecrolimus and Hydrocortisone in Prurigo Nodularis, sponsored by University Hospital Muenster. Completed at 1 site in Germany. Open to participants aged 18 Years to 70 Years. Per ClinicalTrials.gov, last updated 2010-07-07.

Sponsored by University Hospital Muenster · Phase 2, Interventional, and Treatment

Phase
Phase 2
Study type
Interventional
Enrollment
30
Allocation
Randomized
Ages
18 Years to 70 Years
Sex
All
01

Study summary

The development of the topical calcineurin inhibitor pimecrolimus resulted in a significant improvement in the treatment of atopic dermatitis. In addition, an excellent amelioration of pruritus could be regularly observed. Up to now, several itchy dermatoses such as chronic irritative hand dermatitis, rosacea, graft-versus-host-disease, lichen sclerosus, prurigo simplex, scrotal eczema, and inverse psoriasis were reported as single cases also to respond to a pimecrolimus treatment.

In prurigo nodularis, pruritus is the main symptom and it is of immediate importance to find an effective antipruritic therapy. Pruritus is regularly severe and therapy refractory to topical steroids or systemic antihistamines. Capsaicin cream is one effective possibility to reduce the itch in these diseases. However, it has to be applied 3 to 6 times daily, rubs off on the clothing and induces burning in erosions. In addition, since no commercial preparation is available, it has to be prescribed in several concentrations. The application of pimecrolimus seems to be promising since it has to be applied twice daily only. Especially in prurigo nodularis we expect a good response as we could demonstrate in single patients. Furthermore it has been published recently that Tacrolimus, another calcineurin inhibitor has been successfully used in the treatment of six patients with prurigo nodularis.

This study is designed to compare the efficacy and safety of pimecrolimus 1% cream and hydrocortisone 1% cream in prurigo nodularis and to investigate the mode of action of the antipruritic effect of the drugs.

Read the detailed description

Patients will be treated with pimecrolimus cream 1% and hydrocortisone cream 1% twice daily for 8 weeks on diseased skin in a double-blind, randomized within patient comparison (left arm pimecrolimus, right arm hydrocortisone or vice versa). Patients will then enter a 4-week treatment free follow-up period. The overall study duration is 12 months.

The study population will consist of a representative group of 30 adult patients (18 - 70 years of age) with prurigo nodularis from one center in Germany.

Inclusion criteria

  • Age: 18 - 70 years
  • Diagnosis: Prurigo nodularis
  • Pruritus intensity above VAS 3 (Visual analogue scale 0 to 10)
  • Nodules on arms and legs (target areas: arms)
  • No effective current external or internal antipruritic medication
  • Signed informed consent

Exclusion criteria

  • prurigo nodularis with massive excoriations and/or local infections
  • atopic dermatitis, predisposition for atopic dermatitis
  • Itch intensity below VAS 4 (visual analoge scale 0 to 10)
  • Pregnant or nursing (lactating) women, where pregnancy is defined as the state of a female after conception and until the termination of gestation, confirmed by a positive hCG test. Pregnancy should be ruled out before stating the study by a b-subunit HCG test.
  • Females of childbearing potential and not practicing a medically approved, highly effective (low failure rate) method of contraception during and up to at least 4 weeks after the end of treatment. 'Medically approved' contraception may include implants, injectables, combined oral contraceptives, some IUDs (e.g. intrauterine device), sexual abstinence or if the woman has a vasectomized partner.
  • active psychosomatic and psychiatric diseases
  • History of active malignancy of any organ system
  • actual diseases which need therapy and may induce pruritus (e.g. deficiency of iron, zinc)
  • Systemic immunosuppression
  • Topical use of tacrolimus, pimecrolimus, steroids or capsaicin within 2 weeks prior to study entry
  • current and past (within 2 weeks prior to study entry) systemic use of antihistamines, steroids, cyclosporin A and other immunosuppressants, paroxetin, fluvoxamine (selective serotonin reuptake- inhibitors, study possible in case of medication since 6 months due to depression without having any Antipruritic effect) naltrexone and UV-therapy.
  • wound healing disturbances, disposition for keloids, current medication which leads to increased bleeding during procedure e.g. acetylsalicylic acid (ASS), marcumar (no suction blister possible)
  • History of hypersensitivity to pimecrolimus 1% cream or hydrocortisone 1% cream
  • Participation in other clinical studies within the last 4 weeks
02

Conditions studied

  • Prurigo Nodularis

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Keywords

  • Prurigo nodularis
03

In context

Prurigo

38 studies on the registry are indexed under Prurigo; 10 are open to participants now.

This study's enrollment of 30 is below the median of 135 across 31 interventional studies indexed under Prurigo.

Browse Prurigo studies →

Lead sponsor

University Hospital Muenster is the lead sponsor of 192 studies on the registry; 20 are open to participants now.

Counted across the registry records on this site, refreshed daily.

04

Who can participate

Ages eligible
18 Years to 70 Years
Sexes eligible
All
Accepts healthy volunteers
No

Go through the criteria one by one — yes, no or not sure — and take the list to your doctor or the study team. Kept in this browser only.

Inclusion criteria

  • Age: 18 - 70 years
  • Diagnosis: Prurigo nodularis
  • Pruritus intensity above VAS 3 (Visual analoge scale 0 to 10)
  • Nodules on arms and legs (target areas: arms)
  • No effective current external or internal antipruritic medication
  • Signed

Exclusion criteria

Exclusion Criteria:

  • prurigo nodularis with massive excoriations and/or local infections
  • atopic dermatitis, predisposition for atopic dermatitis
  • Itch intensity below VAS 4 (visual analoge scale 0 to 10)
  • Pregnant or nursing (lactating) women, where pregnancy is defined as the state of a female after conception and until the termination of gestation, confirmed by a positive hCG test. Pregnancy should be ruled out before stating the study by a b-subunit HCG test.
  • Females of and not practicing a medically approved, highly effective (low failure rate) method of during and up to at least 4 weeks after the end of treatment. 'Medically approved' contraception may include implants, injectables, combined oral contraceptives, some IUDs (e.g. intrauterine device), sexual abstinence or if the woman has a vasectomized partner.
  • active psychosomatic and psychiatric diseases
  • History of active of any organ system
  • actual diseases which need therapy and may induce pruritus (e.g. deficiency of iron, zinc)
  • Systemic
  • Topical use of tacrolimus, pimecrolimus, or capsaicin within 2 weeks prior to study entry
  • current and past (within 2 weeks prior to study entry) systemic use of antihistamines, steroids, cyclosporin A and other immunosuppressants, paroxetin, fluvoxamine (selective serotonin reuptake- inhibitors, study possible in case of medication since 6 months due to depression without having any Antipruritic effect) naltrexone and UV-therapy.
  • wound healing disturbances, disposition for keloids, current medication which leads to increased bleeding during procedure e.g. acetylsalicylic acid (ASS), marcumar (no suction blister possible)
  • History of to pimecrolimus 1% cream or hydrocortisone 1% cream
  • Participation in other clinical studies within the last 4 weeks
Terms in these criteria, in plain language(7)

Underlined terms in the criteria open these too. Explained by clinicaltrials.gg, not part of the registry record. The study team decides who can take part.

Informed consent

Before you join, the study team explains what taking part involves — its purpose, what happens, the risks and possible benefits — and answers your questions, so you can decide freely. Consent is usually recorded on a form (the informed consent form, ICF) signed by you or, where the law allows, by someone legally authorised to decide for you.

You can keep asking questions during the study, you are told of new information that matters, and you can choose to leave at any time.

Childbearing potential

Able to become pregnant: from the first period until menopause, unless permanently unable to through surgery (removal of the womb, or of both ovaries or both fallopian tubes).

Criteria for people of childbearing potential usually ask for a negative pregnancy test and for contraception during the study and for a time after it.

Contraception

Ways of preventing pregnancy. “Highly effective” methods fail less than 1% of the time a year when used correctly — for example an IUD or an implant.

Criteria usually say which methods count and how long to keep using them after the last dose, sometimes for male participants too. Some studies accept a partner’s vasectomy if it was confirmed successful and that person is the participant’s only sexual partner.

Cancer (malignancy)

Malignancy means cancer. Criteria about another or earlier malignancy ask whether you have had a different cancer, usually within a set number of years.

Some are commonly allowed, such as treated skin cancers other than melanoma and early cancers removed completely — check the exceptions this study lists.

Immunosuppression

A weakened immune system. It can come from an illness, such as HIV or some blood cancers, or from medicines that turn the immune system down, for example after an organ transplant or for an autoimmune disease; steroids at higher doses count.

Read whether the line is about a condition or about medicines, and which medicines and doses it means.

Corticosteroids (steroids)

Anti-inflammatory medicines such as prednisone, prednisolone and dexamethasone — not the anabolic steroids used for muscle.

Studies differ in what they allow: check which steroid medicines, routes (tablets, injections, creams, inhalers, eye drops) and doses this study accepts.

Hypersensitivity

An allergy, or another reaction of the immune system, to a substance. “Hypersensitivity to the study drug” means a known allergic reaction to it — not every side effect a medicine can have.

05

Study design

Phase
Phase 2
Primary purpose
Treatment
Allocation
Randomized
Intervention model
Single group
Masking
Double (Participant, Investigator)
Enrollment
30 participants (actual)

Study arms

  • Active comparator
    I

    Interindividual design: active and comparator (one side each) applied twice daily

    Drug: Pimecrolimus

  • Active comparator
    II Hydrocortisone

    Hydrocortisone, twice daily

    Drug: Hydrocortisone

Interventions

  • twice daily topical

    Also known as: Elidel Cream 1%

  • twice daily topical

    Also known as: Hydrocortisone HExal

  • topical application as a cream twice daily

    Also known as: Elidel 1% Cream

06

What researchers measure

Primary outcomes

  1. Hypothesis: pimecrolimus is superior in the reduction of the itch intensity on a visual analogue scale (VAS) compared to hydrocortisone cream 1%. H1: mean value VAS pimecrolimus < mean value VAS hydrocortisone

    Time frame: 12 months

Secondary outcomes

  1. Improvement of total symptom score (papule, nodules, excoriations, crusting, erythema) scored from 0-3 for each single symptom

    Time frame: 12 months

  2. Change of skin neuropeptide content in suction blisters

    Time frame: 12 months

07

Study locations

1 site
  • Department of Dermtology, University of Münster
    Münster, 48149, Germany
08

References and documents

Publications

  • Stander S, Stander H, Seeliger S, Luger TA, Steinhoff M. Topical pimecrolimus and tacrolimus transiently induce neuropeptide release and mast cell degranulation in murine skin. Br J Dermatol. 2007 May;156(5):1020-6. doi: 10.1111/j.1365-2133.2007.07813.x. Epub 2007 Mar 28. PubMed 17388925 ↗
  • Stander S, Luger TA. [Antipruritic effects of pimecrolimus and tacrolimus]. Hautarzt. 2003 May;54(5):413-7. doi: 10.1007/s00105-003-0521-6. Epub 2003 Mar 21. German. PubMed 12719860 ↗
  • Senba E, Katanosaka K, Yajima H, Mizumura K. The immunosuppressant FK506 activates capsaicin- and bradykinin-sensitive DRG neurons and cutaneous C-fibers. Neurosci Res. 2004 Nov;50(3):257-62. doi: 10.1016/j.neures.2004.07.005. PubMed 15488288 ↗
09

Updates

Tracking since Sep 25, 2026
No changes since tracking began. The registry record was last updated on Jul 7, 2010, before this site started recording changes on Sep 25, 2026. Its history is on ClinicalTrials.gov ↗
10

Registry details

Key details

Study ID
NCT00507832
First posted
Jul 27, 2007
Start date
Apr 2007
Primary completion
Jun 2009
Completion
Oct 2009
Last update
Jul 7, 2010

Study contacts

Thomas A Luger, MD
principal investigator · Department of Dermatology, University of Münster, Von-Esmarch-Str. 58, D-48149 Münster, Germany

Oversight

Data monitoring committee
Yes
View the source record on ClinicalTrials.gov ↗

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Studies of the drugs tested here: Pimecrolimus · Hydrocortisone

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