Efficacy of Traditional Medicine Product Henna and Hydrocortisone on Diaper Dermatitis in Infants

Abstract

BackgroundDiaper dermatitis (DD) is a common inflammatory disorder in infants, including newborns.ObjectivesThis study aimed to compare the effects of a traditional medicine product (containing natural henna oil 25%) and hydrocortisone 1% cream on DD in infants.Patients and MethodsIn a triple-blind, randomized trial, 82 children aged two years or less were randomly divided into two groups of 41 children each to receive either hydrocortisone ointment or henna medicinal product. Infants were treated 3 times a day for 5 days. The severity of dermatitis was assessed on the first, third, and fifth days using a six-point scale. The study was conducted in 2013 in a children teaching hospital in Qazvin, Iran.ResultsBoth groups showed an improvement in the severity of DD (mean DD severity on the first, third and fifth days, respectively, was 3.20, 1.39, and 1.20 in the henna group versus 3.20, 2.05, and 1.90 in the hydrocortisone group; P < 0.001). The henna group showed a better response when compared with the hydrocortisone group: the rate of improvement on the fifth day of treatment was 90.2% (37 of 41 children without erythema) in the former versus 61% (25 of 41 patients) in the latter (P = 0.042). No significant side effects were observed in both the groups.ConclusionsHenna, a traditional medicine product, can be considered an effective and appropriate treatment for DD in infants and children.

The effect of henna (Lawsonia Inermis) on preventing the development of pressure ulcer grade one in intensive care unit patients

“…In the intervention group, the average area of pressure ulcer on the 7 th day decreased significantly as compared with the 1 st day; it also had a significant difference on the 1 st , 4 th , and 7 th days. In[ 7 ] the effectiveness of henna and hydrocortisone 1% ointment on recovery of diaper dermatitis was examined. The results suggested that henna was more effective than hydrocortisone.…”

“…The results suggested that henna was more effective than hydrocortisone. [ 7 ] In addition, the results of a study on the effect of henna in the prevention of pressure ulcers in ICUs indicated that henna can prevent the occurrence of pressure ulcers by reducing local temperature and inflammation of the sacral region. [ 8 ] Another research evaluated the effect of henna leaf extract on cutaneous ulcer in Wistar rats.…”

“…and Ahmadian et al . [ 7 8 ] Two pictures were taken in the 1 st and 7 th days from both intervention and control groups. Data were analyzed by SPSS 16 (SPSS Inc., Chicago, IL), using Chi-square, paired t , independent t , repeated measures ANOVA, and Pearson correlation tests.…”

“…[ 5 ] One of the herbal products with many applications and special position in popular culture of Iran is henna ( Lawsonia inermis ). Different studies have shown the therapeutic effect of its leaves in the prevention and treatment of diabetic foot ulcer,[ 6 ] treatment of diaper dermatitis in infants,[ 7 ] prevention of bedsore,[ 8 ] treatment of hand-foot syndrome caused by drug side effects,[ 9 ] and treatment of acute and chronic gastric ulcer in rats. [ 10 ] Numerous pharmacological effects have also been reported for henna including antibacterial, antifungal, antiviral, antimicrobial, antiparasitic,[ 11 12 ] analgesic, anti-inflammatory, and antipyretic.…”

A Review Study of Diaper Rash Dermatitis Treatments

“…Some studies have been carried out regarding the use of other complementary and traditional treatments such as henna (Keshavarz et al 2016), the combination of honey, wax and olive oil (El Sakka, Abdulrhman & Shehata 2013), aloe vera (Panahi et al 2012), bentonite (Mahmoudi, Adib-Hajbagheri & Mashaiekhi 2015), clay shampoo (Adib-Hajbagheri, Mahmoudi & Mashaiekhi 2014), and anti-hemorrhoid ointment (Liu & Xie 2012), but more studies still need to be done in this topic. Keshavarz et al (2016) conducted a randomized tripleblinded study in 2016 to compare the effects of a tradi-tional drug containing henna 25% and hydrocortisone 1%. In this study, 82 (41 in each group) healthy children under the age of two years suffering from diaper dermatitis were studied and used the drug 3 times a day for 5 days in the area of diaper dermatitis.…”