Often no specific treatment is required - this is a self-limiting infection and it may resolve spontaneously in 6-9 months (but some cases may persist up to 4 years) (1).
Patients should be educated about prevention of spread of the disease - by use of separate towels and other measures of basic hygiene (1).
Treatment options, if required, include
Other treatment options that have been employed include:
However a systematic review concluded that "..no single intervention has been shown to be convincingly effective in the treatment of molluscum contagiosum. We found moderate-quality evidence that topical 5% imiquimod was no more effective than vehicle in terms of clinical cure, but led to more application site reactions.." (9)
Eczema around the lesion can be treated with emollients, 1% ichthammol paste or mild topical or mild topical steroid (5)
For ano-genital molluscum contagiosum:
Highly active antiretroviral therapy may be necessary in HIV patients for the resolution of the disease (2).
Recurrences of the disease are common and the patient should be educated about reappearance of lesions and treatment failure before starting treatment (6).
A more aggressive, widespread form occurs in immunocompromised patients.
Criteria for referral to a secondary care facility:
If there is associated conjunctivitis the patient should be referred to an ophthalmologist (5)
Reference:
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