Comparison of the therapeutic efficacy of cimetidine and cryotherapy with placebo and cryotherapy in treatment of warts

Objective: To compare the therapeutic efficacy of cimetidine and cryotherapy versus placebo and cryotherapy for treatment of warts. Methods: This randomized, double-blind clinical trial was conducted on subjects with warts between 2008 and 2009. Exclusion criteria of this study were Raynaud’s phenomenon, peripheral vascular disease, previous wart treatment and cold urticaria. Subjects were randomly allocated in two groups. In the first group cimetidine was administered, 40 mg/kg daily for three months, also, their warts were frozen monthly for three months. In the second group placebo was administered and their warts were frozen monthly for three month. Recurrence and cure rates for each group were recorded and data were statically analyzed. Results: 81 subjects were recruited in this study. The mean cure rate obtained one month after treatment was 77.6% in cimetidine-treated group versus 79.3% in placebo-treated group, and the mean cure rate two month after treatment was 93.2% in cimetidine-treated group and 94.6% in placebo-treated group. The mean recurrence rate one month after treatment was 16% in cimetidinetreated group and 15.5% in placebo-treated group, the mean recurrence rate two month after treatment was 22.3% in cimetidine-treated group and 23.3% in placebo-treated group, the mean recurrence rate three month after treatment was 31.7% in cimetidine-treated group and 30.1% in placebo-treated group. Conclusion: This study showed that cimetidine is not more effective than placebo in treatment of warts.