TOPICAL GLUCOCORTICOID HAS NO ANTINOCICEPTIVE OR ANTIINFLAMMATORY EFFECT IN THERMAL-INJURY

We have studied the antinociceptive and antiinflammatory effects of to pical glucocorticoids in human thermal injury. The right and left legs of 12 healthy volunteers were allocated randomly to be treated with e ither 0.05% clobetasol propionate cream or placebo in a double-blind t rial Thermal injuries were induced with a thermode, which was heated t o 49 degrees C for 5 min under standardized pressure. Clobetasol propi onate or placebo cream was applied to the skin;rh before burn injury, immediately after the injury and every 12 h for the next 3 days. Heat pain detection thresholds (HPDT), heat pain tolerance (HPT), mechanica l pain detection thresholds (MPDT) and the intensity of burn-induced e rythema (erythema index, El) were assessed inside the thermal injury a nd areas of hyperalgesia to pinprick outside the injury were determine d before and regularly for 72 h after the burn injury. Burn injury cau sed a decrease in HPDT, HPT and MPDT, an increase in El and developmen t of mechanical, secondary hyperalgesia. Clobetasol propionate had no effect on any of the nociceptive or inflammatory variables studied.