Pharmacological action of combined drug containing propylene glycol, urea and lactic acid in onychomycosis

Abstract

Despite the wide range of drugs available for the treatment of onychomycosis, the pharmacotherapy of this disease is associated with the following problems: poor compliance of patients due to long lasting treatment and slow symptoms improvement; poor penetration of antimycotics into the nail plate; development of resistance to existing drugs. In the article we summarize the available experimental and clinical evidence presented in literature regarding the pharmacological actions of combination drug containing propylene glycol, urea and lactic acid which has been registered recently in Ukraine as Onychocid® Emtrix. This drug produces antifungal influence (by physically interacting with the cell wall of fungi, by making pH of the environment more acidic, by causing acidic stress and increasing the formation of antimicrobial peptides), has hydrating and keratolytic effects. The review indicates that the efficacy of this combination drug in onychomycosis has satisfactory evidence base; this drug is easy to use; its active ingredients readily penetrate into the nail plate; it provides early visible improvements in nails affected by onychomycosis (after 2 weeks of treatment) thus increasing the patient’s adherence to therapy; has a broad spectrum of antifungal action including the most common causes of onychomycosis; prevents secondary bacterial infection; does not cause resistance to pathogens; can be combined with oral antimycotic drugs; can be used during pregnancy and lactation. The use of this drug expands opportunities in the treatment of onychomycosis by solving a number of existing problems.