Topical treatment of venous leg ulcers with a prostacyclin hydrogel: a double blind trial

In a randomized, double-blind, placebo controlled study in patients with venous leg ulcers, the efficacy and tolerability of topical applications of a prostacylin hydrogel (iloprost) was investigated. 34 patients were allocated to the placebo treatment and 65 patients were allocated to the iloprost treatment. The iloprost treatment commenced with 10 micrograms/ml for the first 3 days and was increased to 40 micrograms/ml for the remaining treatment period if well tolerated. Maximally 3 ml of the hydrogel were applied daily on the ulcer base for a period of 8 weeks. The total area of the ulcers at the last individual assessment was chosen as the main criterion for evaluation of efficacy. Both concentrations of iloprost were well tolerated with almost the entire trial population on iloprost being treated with the 40 micrograms/ml iloprost hydrogel. With regards to efficacy, no significant difference was found in favour of the iloprost treatment.