Impetigo contagiosa III. Comparative efficacy of oral erythromycin and

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topical mupirocin. Barton-L-L. Friedman-A-D. Sharkey-A-M. Schneller-D-J. Swierkosz-E-M. St. Louis University School of Medicine, Department of Pediatr-Dermatol. 1989 Jun. 6(2). P 134-8. Ninety-seven patients with impetigo were prospectively enrolled in a study to determine the comparative efficacy of systemic and topical antibiotic therapy. After obtaining a bacterial culture from a representative lesion, the children were randomized to receive seven days of either oral erythromycin or topical mupirocin administered three times daily. Staphylococcus aureus alone was isolated from 51% and in association with group A beta-hemolytic streptococci (GABS) from 29%; GABS alone was isolated from 4% of patients. Of 48 children who received erythromycin, 43 (90%) were clinically improved or cured, and 11 of 17 were bacteriologically cured. Of 49 children who received mupirocin, 47 (96%) were clinically improved or cured, and 10 of 14 were bacteriologically cured. At three-week follow-up, clinical cure rates and number of secondary household cases of impetigo were equivalent in both treatment groups. Mupirocin appears to be a well-tolerated, albeit expensive, alternative to erythromycin for the treatment of impetigo.