Econazole nitrate topical foam, 1%, is indicated for the treatment of interdigital
tinea pedis caused by <em>Trichophyton rubrum, Trichophyton mentagrophytes,</em> and <em>Epidermophyton floccosum</em> in patients 12 years of age and older. The symptom of itch or
pruritus was evaluated in two randomized, double-blind, parallel-group, vehicle-controlled, multicenter Phase III studies in which
econazole foam was compared with foam vehicle in subjects with interdigital
tinea pedis. A thin, uniform layer of study treatment was applied once daily to all clinically affected interdigital regions of both feet for four weeks. At baseline, at least 69% of all subjects had moderate to severe itch. Throughout the duration of both studies, numerically
econazole foam was numerically superior to vehicle in achieving absence of itch. After the
cessation of treatment, from day 29,
itching continues to improve until day 43 in the active treatment group, whereas there is no evident continued improvement within the vehicle foam groups. At day 43, in the active treatment groups, 83% in Study 1 and 71% in Study 2 achieved complete absence of
itching. Using less stringent criteria, for the
econazole nitrate foam arm, achieving no itch or mild itch (0 or 1), in Study 1, 95% and 86.8% in Study 2 achieved this outcome. Tolerability of the products was excellent with few treatment-related adverse events. In summary,
econazole foam decreased the burden of itch as early as day 8 in patients with interdigital
tinea pedis, and this improvement continued after
cessation of treatment. <br /><br /> <em>J Drugs Dermatol.</em> 2016;15(9):1111-1114.