Miconazole therapy for endemic fungal disease

Miconazole nitrate (2.0%) cream was evaluated in the treatment of endemic dermatophytosis in an overcrowded prison. The active drug was compared in a random double-blind study with its control vehicle in the treatment of 99 inmates who had moderate to severe symptomatic disease. Tinea cruris and tinea pedis caused by Trichophyton rubrum predominated, although Trichophyton mentagrophytes and Candida albicans were also isolated and identified. Prompt clinical clearing occurred in 75.5% of those treated with miconazole versus 12.0% of those treated with the vehicle alone. Results of mycological examination closely paralleled and confirmed these clinical results.