Is Erythromycin an Effective Treatment for Chronic Bullous Disease of Childhood? A National Survey of Members of the British Society for Paediatric Dermatology

  Chronic bullous disease of childhood is the commonest acquired blistering disorder of children. Erythromycin has been reported to be beneficial for this condition. A three question survey was e‐mailed to all members of the British Society for Paediatric Dermatology to assess the incidence, preferred treatments and experience of oral erythromycin in treating chronic bullous disease of childhood. A second, more detailed questionnaire was sent to members who had used erythromycin. Forty patients were reported to have been treated over the previous 2 years. The preferred treatment was dapsone. Erythromycin alone had been used in five children as first‐line oral treatment. In three of these patients the initial improvement was graded as either “good” or “complete resolution.” This benefit was only sustained in one child, with the other two relapsing between 4 and 12 weeks. In a further eight children, erythromycin had been used with other oral agents. In five of these children, erythromycin was associated with long‐term benefit. These results suggest that erythromycin is unlikely to produce sustained improvement in chronic bullous disease of childhood when used as a sole first‐line agent. However, erythromycin can cause an initial improvement, which may be useful whilst awaiting results of diagnostic tests and may confer benefit when used with other systemic treatments.