Topical ivermectin has significant clinical efficacy and decreases the density of Demodex mites found in the skin of people with rosacea, but cutaneous dysbiosis remains, according to a report presented at the recent European Academy of Dermatology and Venereology (EADV) 2023 Congress.
"This is the first hint that the host's cutaneous microbiome plays a secondary role in the immunopathogenesis of rosacea," said Bernard Homey, MD, director of the Department of Dermatology at University Hospital Düsseldorf in Germany.
"In rosacea, we are well aware of trigger factors such as stress, UV light, heat, cold, food, and alcohol," he said. "We are also well aware that there is an increase in Demodex mites in the pilosebaceous unit."
Research over the past decade has also started to look at the potential role of the skin microbiome in the disease process, but answers have remained "largely elusive," Homey said.
Ivermectin Helps, but How?
Ivermectin 1% cream (Soolantra) has been approved by the US Food and Drug Administration since 2014 for the treatment of the inflammatory lesions that are characteristic of rosacea, but its mechanism of action is not clear.
Homey presented the results of a study of 61 patients designed to look at how ivermectin might be working in the treatment of people with rosacea and investigate if there was any relation to the skin microbiome and transcriptome of patients.
