Background & Objectives: Rhinoscleroma is a chronic granulomatous disease of the nose and upper respiratory passages endemic in Egypt, this study aimed to evaluate the efficacy of Doxycycline (alone and in combination with Ciprofloxacin) as an alternative to the regular regimen in treating rhinoscleroma.
Methods: A prospective randomized comparative clinical trial included 42 Rhinoscleroma cases, 21 cases treated with Doxycycline and 21 cases treated with a combination of Doxycycline and Ciprofloxacin. This study was conducted in Otorhinolaryngology department at Assiut University Hospital from October 2021 to October 2023. The collected data included: Age, sex and residence, pretreatment clinical symptoms/signs, posttreatment clinical symptoms/signs, posttreatment biopsy results for rhinoscleroma and follow up biopsy results for rhinoscleroma 3 months after successful treatment in the studied groups.
Results: For treatment of rhinoscleroma, it was found that doxycycline has a relatively low efficacy both clinically and histopathologically (with 28.6% remission rate) when used alone but this efficacy is significantly increased on combining the drug with ciprofloxacin (showing 57.1% remission rate). Conclusion The combination of doxycycline and ciprofloxacin offers a promising alternative to regular regimens used in treatment of rhinoscleroma with a shorter course, and fewer controllable side effects.