Introduction: The objective of this study was to evaluate the efficacy of thalidomide in the treatment of chronic erythema multiforme unresponsive to usual treatments.
Patients and methods: Twenty-six patients with chronic erythema multiforme were given thalidomide 100 mg/day after other treatments had failed, particularly acyclovir and prednisone.
Results: Twenty patients had recurrent erythema multiforme and were given thalidomide at the beginning of an episode. The duration of the episodes was reduced by 11 days on the average. Six of the patients had subintrant erythema multiforme and were given continuous treatment. Lesions disappeared within 5 to 8 days and remission was maintained with low dose-treatment.
Discussion: The spectacular results obtained here should be verified in a controlled study.