Clotrimazole-Betamethasone Dipropionate Combination

The present invention relates to antifungal compositions comprising clotrimazole, a synthetic antifungal agent, and betamethasone dipropionate, a corticosteroid. Such compositions are surprisingly more effective against fungi than compositions comprising only clotrimazole.

The compositions of the present invention comprise about 0.001 to about 0.33 percent by weight betamethasone dipropionate and about 0.01 to about 10 percent by weight clotrimazole in a pharmaceutically acceptable carrier. Preferably, the compositions of the present invention comprise about 0.01 to about 0.1 percent by weight betamethasone diproprionate and about 0.1 to about 2 percent by weight clotrimazole. In the compositions of the present invention, the ratio of clotrimazole to betamethasone dipropionate ranges from about 10 to 1 to about 30 to 1. A particularly preferred composition comprises about 0.06 percent by weight betamethasone diproprionate and about 1 percent by weight clotrimazole.

The compositions of the present invention may be used in the topical treatment of the following derma and/or vaginal infections: tinea pedis, tinea cruris, and tinea corporis due to, for example, Trichophyton rubrum, Trichophyton mentagrophytes, Epidermophyton floccosum, and Microsporum canis; candidiasis due to Candida albicans; and tinea versicolor due to Malassezia furfur. The compositions of the present invention are particularly useful when these infections are accompanied by moderate to severe inflammation.

Depending on the severity of the infection, the present compositions may be administered one or more times per day for a period ranging from a few days to several weeks until sufficient improvement is obtained, depending upon the judgment of the attending clinician. The compositions may be administered topicaly in the form of creams, ointments, lotions, solutions, aerosol sprays, and the like. Although an ointment is likely to be the most effective vehicle, because of the occlusive effect of the anhydrous petrolatum vehicle, a cream or lotion is likely to be more esthetically acceptable to the patient. For vaginal administration, the use of tablets, suppositories or coated condoms may also be advantageous.

The following Example gives illustrative formulations, at five concentrations, of the compositions of the present invention. All weights are given in miligrams. Cream, ointment and lotion formulations having the same identifying letter have the same concentration of active ingredients. The following ingredients are combined and packaged by standard techniques, well-known to those skilled in the art, to give the cream, ointment or lotion, as requird. The dashes in columns B, C, D and E indicate that the weight of a particular ingredient is the same as that in column A.