Molluscum contagiosum effectively treated with a topical acidified nitrite, nitric oxide liberating cream

Ormerod, A.D.; White, M.I.; Shah, S.A.A.; Benjamin, N.

A double‐blind, group‐sequential clinical trial of acidified nitrite was performed to demonstrate the efficacy of this nitric oxide donor in treating molluscum contagiosum. Subjects received either 5% sodium nitrite co‐applied with 5% salicylic acid under occlusion, or identical cream with 5% salicylic acid, omitting sodium nitrite. Active and control treatment groups were well matched for the number and duration of lesions and made a similar number of applications. We found a 75% cure rate in the active treatment group and 21% cure with control treatment (P = 0·01). The mean time to cure was 1·83 months. Staining of the skin and irritation were frequent side‐effects but did not prevent successful treatment.