[Local effects of transdermal treatment with rotigotine]

Rotigotine is the first transdermal non-ergolinic dopaminergic agonist used in the treatment of Parkinson's disease. It has several important advantages such as once-daily administration, absence of interactions with food, steady levels in plasma and continuous dopaminergic stimulation. Although its systemic side effects are similar to those seen in other dopaminergic agonists, rotigotine also has local side effects derived from the site of application. The aim of this paper is to review those local problems.

A retrospective analysis was carried out in order to identify the first 165 patients treated with rotigotine. Patients with intracranial lesions, psychiatric pathology or dementia were excluded. Patients were evaluated before and at two, four and six months after beginning treatment with rotigotine.

In all, 94 males and 71 females were identified, with an average age of 65.2 and an average rotigotine daily dose of 11.3 mg. Local side effects were present in 21 patients and they were usually mild. Two patients abandoned the treatment because of these local adverse events, presenting erythema and prurigo. Thirty patients complained about lack of adherence of the patch, specially when it was hot, and 36 about the formation of wrinkles in the patch. None of these problems was associated to motor fluctuations or other complications.

Local complications of transdermal rotigotine are mild but frequent. We consider it is necessarily to take them into account to get a better treatment of patients suffering from Parkinson's disease.