Background: Infantile hemangiomas (IHs) are common childhood tumors. Objective: Our study aimed to compare the efficacy and side effects of imiquimod and timolol maleate for the treatment of proliferating superficial IHs. Methods: A total of 54 patients with superficial IHs were enrolled in this study. Each lesion was evenly divided into two parts. One part was treated with 5% imiquimod cream once every other day, and the other part was smeared with 0.5% timolol maleate eye drops thrice daily. After 16 weeks of treatment, the thickness, color and size of each lesion were measured, and the side effects were recorded. Results: The efficacy rates for imiquimod and timolol maleate were 81.4 and 88.9%, respectively, but the difference between treatments was not significant. However, timolol maleate showed better effects for color involution, onset time and side effects than imiquimod. Conclusion: Timolol maleate might be the first choice for the topical treatment of superficial IHs.

Keywords:
Infantile hemangioma, Imiquimod, Timolol maleate
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2015
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