Successful treatment of perifolliculitis capitis abscedens et suffodiens with combined isotretinoin and dapsone

Abstract

Perifolliculitis capitis abscedens et suffodiens (PCAS) is a rare scalp disease of unknown etiology which is hard to treat. It is often accompanied by scarring alopecia, acne conglobata, and recurrent fluctuant abscesses. PCAS belongs to the family of acne inversa (hidradenitis suppurativa). A 19-year-old man presented with PCAS for 2 years; multiple systemic antibiotic therapies and surgical approaches had shown no effect. Monotherapy with isotretinoin 80 mg daily for 4 weeks had not been successful. Combination therapy with dapsone 100 mg and isotretinoin 80 mg daily produced significant improvement. During 4 weeks of treatment significant clearing was achieved. Dapsone was reduced to 50 mg daily after 6 months, while isotretinoin was discontinued gradually. Now the patient is on dapsone 50 mg every other day and has remained free of recurrences for 6 months.