Treatment of Extracutaneous Sporotrichosis

Six of 9 patients with extracutaneous sporotrichosis in the present series, and, to our knowledge, 15 patients previously reported in the literature were treated with amphotericin B. Of 21 patients treated with the drug, five of the seven with pulmonary disease alone and eight of the 14 with disseminated extrapulmonary disease responded well to amphotericin B alone or in combination with other therapy. Eleven of the 21 patients were given iodides alone or together with hydroxystilbamidine isethionate or griseofulvin. All responded poorly to these drugs or relapsed. These data suggest that amphotericin B is more effective than iodides in the treatment of extracutaneous sporotrichosis. However, a prospective study comparing amphotericin B with iodide therapy is needed to determine if the apparent superiority of amphotericin B is real.