A study on the usefulness of eppikajutsuto for cellulitis

Abstract

Cellulitis is a skin and soft‐tissue infection that is primarily treated with antimicrobial therapy, with the assumption that an organism is the causative agent. Eppikajutsuto (EPTJ) is generally used to alleviate inflammatory swelling, pain, and warmth in joints owing to its heat™1‐clearing and fluid™1‐regulating properties. This study is a retrospective analysis of the efficacy and safety of EPTJ in the treatment of cellulitis.A total of 99 patients (48 men and 51 women) treated with EPTJ for cellulitis were recruited. The drug was considered effective when symptoms improved with EPTJ (including concomitant use of Kampo prescriptions) and ineffective when EPTJ was discontinued or changed to another drug. Adverse reactions were also monitored.There were 94 effective and five ineffective cases (efficacy rate, 94.9%). No adverse events were reported. The dosing period of the effective group was found to be significantly longer than that of the ineffective group (p = 0.0221). Antibiotics were used in 48.5% of the cases; however, there was no difference in concomitant antibiotic use between the effective and ineffective groups.EPTJ may be a safe and effective treatment option for cellulitis. Although antimicrobial agents were used in 48.5% of cases, further studies are needed to determine whether the concomitant use of antimicrobial agents is essential or the concomitant use of non‐steroidal anti‐inflammatory drugs is useful.