Clinical markers improve with IV ertapenem for hidradenitis suppurativa

Treatment of hidradenitis suppurativa (HS) with intravenous ertapenem is associated with improvement in clinical and inflammatory markers, according to a study published online Feb. 19 in JAMA Dermatology.

Avigdor Nosrati, M.D., from the Albert Einstein College of Medicine in New York City, and colleagues conducted a retrospective review of the medical records of 98 patients with HS between 2018 and 2022 to examine optimal course duration, efficacy, and patient satisfaction associated with intravenous ertapenem. Treatment was with 1 g of ertapenem, which was self-administered at home for 12 to 16 weeks.

The mean treatment duration spanned 13.1 weeks; posttherapy follow-up occurred after 7.8 weeks. The researchers observed significant reductions in the mean HS Physician Global Assessment scores from baseline to posttherapy follow-up and in the numerical rating scale for pain, C-reactive protein, interleukin-6, and leukocytes. Overall, 78.0 percent of the patients participated in the telephone survey at follow-up, with 80.3 percent reporting medium-to-high satisfaction. Most patients (90.8 percent) would recommend ertapenem to other patients.

"Larger, prospective, randomized clinical trials are needed to further optimize ertapenem dosing and duration, to evaluate the coadministration of other therapies, and to develop strategies for maintaining therapeutic outcomes," the authors write.

One author disclosed ties to Verrica Pharmaceuticals.

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