Ointment "Tacropic": reviews, instructions for use and analogues

Atopic dermatitis is a common chronic disease. It occurs due to the special state of the immune system and congenital deficiency of certain proteins in the skin. This ailment is characterized by a high sensitivity of the skin to various environmental factors and a tendency to the occurrence of allergic inflammatory reactions. Atopic dermatitis is manifested by dry skin, itching, and redness. To suppress these symptoms, there are various drugs, one of which is Tacropic ointment. Reviews about it and instructions for use - a relevant and important topic for people with atopic dermatitis and about to use the named tool.

What patients say

Each person receiving a prescription from a doctor for the purchase of Tacropic first of all begins to find out how other people used this medicine and whether they faced a worsening of their condition. There are no terrible reviews about Tacropic ointment. Mostly people respond positively about the drug. It effectively acts on the skin. As a rule, the very next day after the first application, some symptoms disappear or become less pronounced. Some patients stopped itching, swelling disappeared. About a week later, redness completely disappeared.

There are very few negative reviews about Tacropic ointment. In them, people complain that the ointment does not help. However, experts note that the ointment is effective only for atopic dermatitis. If there is some other disease, then the remedy, of course, will not help. Negative reviews often write about high cost. The approximate price of the drug is from 550 to 700 rubles for an aluminum tube of 15 g.

Available varieties of ointment and composition

And now let's start considering the drug. First of all, pay attention to the fact that different types of Tacropic ointment are mentioned in reviews - with 0.03% and 0.1% concentration. The drug in a dosage of 0.03% is prescribed only to children aged 2 to 16 years. For doctors from 16 years old and adults, doctors prescribe both 0.1% and 0.03% ointment. Treatment usually begins with a more concentrated drug. It helps to achieve normal skin condition in the lesion. With noticeable improvements, they switch to the drug 0.03%.

The ointment, produced under the name "Tacropic", has a white or almost white color. She may have a faint specific smell. The composition of the ointment includes one active substance - tacrolimus. There are several excipients in the preparation:

• macrogol-400;
• liquid paraffin;
• petroleum jelly white;
• emulsion wax;
• disodium edetate;
• purified water;
• Phenoxyethanol preservative Euxyl PE 9010.

Pharmacological features

The instructions for use of the ointment "Tacropic" indicate the pharmacotherapeutic group. The drug refers to anti-inflammatory drugs intended only for topical use.

The active substance, called tacrolimus, is an inhibitor of calcineurin. It is a highly active immunosuppressant that suppresses the immune response at the cellular level. When penetrated into the skin, tacrolimus inhibits calcineurin, which triggers the T-cell signal. Under the influence of the active component, some processes are blocked - lymphocyte division, cytokine production, beta cell proliferation. Additionally, the release of inflammatory mediators is inhibited. Tacrolimus does not affect the synthesis of collagen. This means that the drug does not cause skin atrophy.

In tacrolimus, several pharmacokinetic features can be distinguished:

1. The substance acts only on the skin. The active component enters the systemic circulation in minimal amounts.
2. Tacrolimus metabolism in the skin does not occur. When it enters the systemic circulation, this process occurs in the liver.
3. The multiple elimination half-life is 65 hours in children and 75 hours in adults.

It is worth noting that tacrolimus was first isolated in 1984 by Japanese scientists. A lot of research has been done. Their results proved the therapeutic value of the substance in the treatment of atopic dermatitis. However, the safety of tacrolimus with prolonged use (more than a year) has not been studied. Some experts note that with prolonged use there is a likelihood of immunosuppression and the development of oncological formations. There are no terrible reviews about Tacropic ointment on this subject. However, cases with malignancy, i.e., with the acquisition by the cells of the properties of a malignant tumor, were recorded in practice. True, these cases were isolated.

Indications and contraindications

Atopic dermatitis is the only indication for the use of Tacropic ointment. The instructions for use have an additional explanation. Its essence - this tool refers to second-line drugs. Ointment is prescribed for the treatment of moderate severity and severe forms of atopic dermatitis in those cases when:

• the disease is resistant to other external medicine;
• a person has contraindications to the use of other drugs intended for the treatment of atopic dermatitis.

Ointment "Tacropic" can not be used with hypersensitivity to the active and auxiliary components. There are also age restrictions. Those people who are already familiar with the remedy focus on one thing in reviews: 0.03% Tacropic ointment is contraindicated for children under 2 years old, and 0.1% ointment cannot be used until 16 years of age.

No agent is prescribed during pregnancy and lactation, because no studies have been conducted to confirm the safety of the drug for the mother and child. You can not use the ointment for congenital and acquired immunodeficiencies, while taking immunosuppressive drugs. Another contraindication is the presence of serious violations of the epidermal barrier. Patients with such a problem have a risk of increasing systemic absorption of the active component from the composition of the drug.

In some cases, experts recommend caution in use. This applies to those people who have identified decompensated liver failure, there are extensive skin lesions.

The use of ointments for treatment

Knowledgeable patients in reviews of Tacropic ointment recommend using the instructions for use strictly, because this determines not only the effectiveness of the drug, but also its safety. There are some general guidelines:

1. Affected areas on the skin should be treated with the drug, applying it in a thin layer. This procedure for treatment purposes can be performed on any part of the body. The only exceptions are mucous membranes. Do not apply ointment to them.
2. Do not apply the medicine under an occlusive dressing, since no studies have been conducted to confirm safety. Experts suggest that occlusion can lead to the manifestation of the systemic effects of the ointment.

How to use this tool and for how long? A specific answer to this question cannot be found in reviews of Tacropic ointment. Rules of use are determined by age.

The use of the drug for preventive purposes

Since atopic dermatitis is a chronic disease, prophylaxis is indispensable. It allows you to reduce the frequency of exacerbations and increase the duration of remissions. "Tacropic" for prevention is not prescribed to all people. Doctors prescribe this medicine for those patients who are more likely to experience exacerbations of the disease 4 times a year (for adults and children from 16 years old - 0.1% ointment, for children from 2 to 16 years old - 0.03% ointment).

The remedy for prophylaxis is used infrequently, as evidenced by reviews of Tacropic ointment. The instructions confirm this. The medicine is used only 2 times a week. In this case, you can not smear the skin 2 days in a row. Between applications, there must be an interval of at least 2-3 days.

What places should the drug be applied to? In reviews of Tacropic ointment, people often share this information. During prevention, those areas that are most often affected by exacerbation of atopic dermatitis should be treated.

Patients note. If a doctor prescribed Tacropic ointment for prevention, this does not mean that it will need to be used in the future for life. After 12 months of maintenance therapy, its results are evaluated, a decision is made on the feasibility of further preventive use of the drug.

Side effects

The body of each person is individual, therefore, all patients differently tolerate Tacropic ointment with dermatitis. In the reviews, people talk about the symptoms that they have due to the drug. If we analyze all real stories, we can conclude: most often, patients during the use of Tacropic experience skin irritation symptoms. Undesirable effects are observed at the site of application of the drug. Patients complain of itching, burning, pain. On examination, skin rashes, redness are noticeable. Symptoms of skin irritation are most often mild. All these negative phenomena disappear on their own during the first week of using the drug.

Frequently occurring adverse effects include local skin infections. During treatment, all patients have an increased risk of developing herpes Kaposi's eczema, folliculitis, infection provoked by Herpes simplex (herpes simplex virus), etc. In medical practice, it is known that Tacropic ointments occur due to 0.03%, 0.1% Rosacea. In the reviews, experts note that these were isolated cases.

During the use of the drug is not recommended to drink alcohol. Often after taking alcohol-containing drinks in patients, the face reddens, skin irritation occurs. These unwanted effects are symptoms of alcohol intolerance.

Drug interaction

The part of the drug’s active substance that enters the systemic circulation is metabolized in the liver by the action of the CYP3A4 isoenzyme. In theory, this process may worsen if a person takes inhibitors of the indicated isoenzyme (for example, erythromycin, ketoconazole). However, in the reviews of Tacropic ointments 0.1% and 0.03%, experts note that the interaction of tacrolimus and inhibitors of the CYP3A4 isoenzyme is unlikely. At the same time, it is not worth excluding the likelihood of this (especially in people with extensive areas of skin lesions).

Unfortunately, no large-scale studies have been conducted to evaluate the effect of Tacropic ointment on vaccination performance. Because of this, one cannot say with 100% certainty that tacrolimus does not affect the effectiveness of different vaccines. In order not to endanger people's health, doctors prescribe vaccination:

• 2 weeks before the start of treatment with ointment "Tacropic" or 2 weeks after the last use of the drug;
• 28 days or 28 days later if a live attenuated vaccine is planned.

There is only information about the conjugate vaccine against Neisseria meningitidis serotype C. When used simultaneously with tacrolimus in children aged 2 to 11 years, there was no negative effect on the primary response to vaccination, the cellular and humoral immune response, and the formation of immune memory.

Nothing can be said about the simultaneous use of Tacropic ointment and other external drugs, systemic glucocorticosteroids, immunosuppressants. The interaction of these drugs has not been studied by experts.

Additional information for patients

Today it is not known whether the ointment is able to affect the sensitivity of the skin to ultraviolet light. For this reason, specialists give a recommendation to patients - during treatment, avoid exposure to sunlight, do not visit tanning salons. All of these measures are considered prevention of photocarcinogenesis (skin cancer). Also, in no case should you apply Tacropic ointment to those areas that are considered as precancerous and malignant. If you ignore this recommendation, you are more likely to develop skin cancer.

It is also important to know that:

1. The ointment should not get into the eyes. Otherwise, they must be washed immediately with water.
2. With external use, cases of overdose were not recorded.
3. If the medicine gets inside, you need to call an ambulance. Before the arrival of specialists, you can not induce vomiting, rinse the stomach. The patient needs such measures as monitoring the general condition, monitoring the vital functions of the body.
4. The effect of Tacropic ointment on the ability to drive various mechanisms and vehicles has not been investigated. However, it can be assumed that the medicine does not have any negative effect, because it is used externally.
5. After using Tacropic ointment (as well as after applying any other local medicine), you need to thoroughly rinse your hands. Exceptions are those cases when the medicine is applied to the hands for medicinal purposes.

Analogues of ointment "Tacropic"

This drug does not have too many analogues. The full counterpart is Protopic. This medicine is available in the form of an ointment for external use with a concentration of 0.1% and 0.03%. The active substance in the composition is tacrolimus. This means that Protopic acts in exactly the same way as Takropik. These drugs have one indication, the same method of use, similar contraindications and side effects. The differences are only in the features of the release and prices. The Protopic drug, which is an analogue of Tacropic ointment, says in the instructions for use that it is available in plastic tubes of 10, 30 and 60 g. The price, of course, depends on the volume and dosage. For example, 10 g of ointment 0.1% and 0.03% costs about 650 rubles, and 30 g of ointment 0.1% and 0.03% - about 1550-1650 rubles.

The Takropik preparation also has a nosological analogue - this is Elidel. This drug is available in the form of a cream. The active substance in the composition is pimecrolimus. This component is a derivative of macrolactam ascomycin. It has a high anti-inflammatory activity. The drug is prescribed for atopic dermatitis (eczema). It can be used not only for adults. Treatment of children with Elidel cream is allowed from the age of 3 months. The approximate price is about 850 rubles for an aluminum tube with 15 g of 1% of the drug.

Atopic dermatitis is a serious and difficult disease, so you can not treat it yourself with different medicines. All drugs, including the considered drug, can harm the human body if used improperly. When treating adults and children, it is also not recommended to focus on reviews about Tacropic ointment, even if they are written by specialists. Nothing can replace a doctor’s face-to-face consultation.