Clinical efficacy and safety of tazarotene: optimizing clinical results

Tazarotene is the first topical retinoid demonstrated to be both effective and tolerable in the treatment of psoriasis. The clinical efficacy and safety of topical tazarotene have been investigated in vehicle-controlled and active-controlled studies. Ongoing studies are evaluating its use in combination with other antipsoriasis medications. Tazarotene has been demonstrated to be significantly more effective than vehicle, and comparable in efficacy to fluocinonide 0.05%, but with a more sustained therapeutic effect after treatment is stopped. Its adverse effects consist primarily of mild to moderate local irritation with no reports of treatment-related systemic adverse effects. Combining tazarotene with a mid- to high-potency corticosteroid gives greater efficacy with fewer adverse effects than either agent used alone. The use of tazarotene in combination with phototherapy or calcipotriene is currently being investigated. Overall, topical tazarotene is a highly useful addition to the array of options available for the topical treatment of mild to moderate plaque psoriasis.