Efficacy of intralesional bleomycin versus cryotherapy in the treatment of palmoplantar warts

Abstract

Objective To compare the efficacy of intralesional bleomycin versus cryotherapy in the treatment of palmoplantar viral warts. Methods The study was conducted for 09 months from March 2020 to December 2020 at outpatient department of dermatology Nishtar Medical University Multan.102 patients were included in the study. Patients randomly allocated into two groups by lottery method. Group A, having 51 patients were given intralesional bleomycin for two sessions at 3 weekly intervals, and group B, also having 51 patients were given cryotherapy also for two sessions at 3 weekly intervals. Patients were followed up at 3 weekly intervals, i.e. at visit for the next session and at the end of 6 weeks. Efficacy was assessed at the end of 6 weeks. Those who cleared their warts after 1st session were not given a 2nd session of treatment. Results Of 102 patients, 60 were males (58.82%) and 42 were females (41.18%). Mean patient age was 24.69 ±8.052 years. Mean patient weight was 49.17±10.475 kg. Mean duration of warts was 57.50±23.131 days. Mean number of warts was 1.84±1.167 and mean size of wart was 4.76 ± 2.016mm. In bleomycin group, 43 patients showed effective response (84.31%). In cryotherapy group, 33 patients showed effective response (64.71%). The efficacy of both groups was compared by applying chi square test and p value was found to be 0.023, which was quite significant (< 0.05) showing that there was statistically significant difference between the efficacy of two therapies. Conclusion Intralesional bleomycin is a superior treatment option as compared to cryotherapy in treatment of palmoplantar warts in terms of increased efficacy, cost effectiveness and better tolerability. Key Words Palmoplantar warts, bleomycin, Intralesional, cryotherapy