[Topical administration of cyclosporin in psoriasis vulgaris]

Two groups of patients with chronic plaque psoriasis were topically treated either with 10% cyclosporin in a jelly base or with 5% cyclosporin in an ointment base under occlusion. We found that cyclosporin penetrates into the lower epidermis and the dermis, when it is applied under occlusion. Obviously, the target cells are neutrophil granulocytes, since they decrease in number under cyclosporin, whereas the other inflammatory cells as well as the epidermal proliferation remain unchanged. In contrast to systemic application of cyclosporin, we did not observe any clinical differences between plaques treated with cyclosporin and those treated with placebo.