Digoxin with furosemide is efficacious in cutaneous warts

• Published in: British journal of dermatology (1951) Vol. 180; no. 5; p. e164
• Main Authors: Rijsbergen, M., Niemeyer‐van der Kolk, T., Hogendoorn, G., Kouwenhoven, S., Lemoine, C., Klaassen, E.S., de Koning, M., Beck, S., Bouwes Bavinck, J.N., Feiss, G., Burggraaf, J., Rissmann, R.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Oxford Oxford University Press 01.05.2019
• Subjects: Digoxin; Furosemide; Skin; Warts
• ISSN: 0007-0963; 1365-2133
• DOI: 10.1111/bjd.17803

Summary This is a study of the effect of two topically‐applied (i.e. applied to the skin) drugs, digoxin and furosemide, on the healing of viral warts on the skin. It was performed by a group from the Netherlands and Pennsylvania, USA. The investigation is known as a proof of concept study, which is a preliminary experiment to show whether there is likely to be a benefit of a particular course of treatment. These two medicines are believed to improve healing rates of viral warts because they block the passage of potassium into cells, a process that is necessary for the growth of wart viruses in human skin. The team used a topically applied preparation containing the two medications and measured the size of warts, the presence of visible features on their surface and their disappearance; in addition, samples were taken for testing for the presence of wart virus. All the patients had warts that had not responded to other treatments. The study followed different groups of 20 patients who received either both medications combined, each singly or a placebo. This showed that after 6 weeks of daily treatment and a follow up of 14 weeks, only those patients who had received the treatment with both digoxin and furosemide together showed improvements, with some achieving elimination of the warts. This is an encouraging result, but the work should now be carried out on a larger number of patients with warts that have not been treated before as, although the new treatment led to greater improvement, the numbers of patients whose warts disappeared completely was small. There were no side effects associated with the treatment. Linked Article: Rijsbergen et al. Br J Dermatol 2019; 180:1058–1068