What is Mupirocin Cream?
Mupirocin is used to treat certain skin infections. It is available as a prescription drug for skin use in the form of a topical ointment and a topical cream, as well as in a brand name Centany and as a generic drug [1]. Specifically, it belongs to the class of topical antibacterials, which acts by a similar mechanism to treat similar conditions [1].
What Does Mupirocin Cream Do?
Mupirocin Cream exerts its antibacterial effect by killing pathogens. Its bactericidal spectrum is very narrow and is only effective at killing pathogens that commonly cause secondary infections in superficial wounds, such as strains of Staphylococcus aureus and Streptococcus pyogenes [1, 2].
Topically applied mupirocin cream is effective in patients with:
- secondary infected traumatic lesions,
- eczema,
- burns,
- wounds,
- bites,
- and ulcers.
Its safety profile is good, with topical and systemic toxicity appearing uncommon. Antimicrobial resistance has only been documented in a minority of the relevant pathogens [2].
Beyond its antimicrobial activity, mupirocin enhances wound healing by stimulating the proliferation of human keratinocytes and the secretory activity of human fibroblasts, leading to increased synthesis of various growth factors that promote wound healing [3].
Benefits of Mupirocin Cream
Mupirocin Cream is a topical antibiotic that offers several benefits in treating various skin conditions.
Mupirocin Cream's key features and advantages are its usefulness and effectiveness in treating bacterial skin infections. It effectively treats bacterial skin infections that patients may have due to a secondary infection. Out of the patients treated with Mupirocin, 91% of the participants showed a favourable response [4].
However, Mupirocin Cream is active against bacteria that cause impetigo—a highly infectious skin infection—by killing Staphylococcus aureus and Streptococcus pyogenes, commonly found with impetigo [1].
Another promising outcome associated with the use of Mupirocin Cream is wound-healing operations. While its antibacterial feature is tested as a treatment against infected wounds, it also unlocks wound healing mechanisms by increasing the proliferation of human keratinocytes and promoting growth factors production; the latter is one of the most important aspects of wound healing [3].
Mupirocin Cream can be used to eradicate nasal carriage of Staphylococcus aureus (including MRSA) with >95% success in subjects [5].
Moreover, Mupirocin Cream has fewer side effects than systemic antibiotics, is cheaper, easier to use, and is less associated with antibiotic resistance [6].
Finally, Mupirocin Cream was formulated into a spray as a stable ultra-thin film for sustained release of the drug and has shown superior anti-bacterial and antibiofilm activities against Escherichia coli, one of the predominant skin pathogens responsible for wound and surgical site infections [7].
What is Ringworm?
Ringworm, also known as tinea corporis (meaning a fungal infection of the body) or tinea capitis (meaning a fungal infection of the scalp), is a fungal skin infection that derives its name from the worm foundation. Shaped similar to a worm, the rash of ringworm – a red, irritated circle of skin encased in a raised, red circle – takes on the worm appellation. Ringworm is a fungus, not a worm [8].
Causes of Ringworm
Ringworm is a fungal disease, and scientists have found more than 40 different species of fungi that can cause it [9].
Most of these fungi prefer to grow in hot, humid places such as:
- Locker rooms
- Indoor pool areas
- Soil
- Gyms
- On your pets
- On your hat, towel
- Or combs
Spread by fungal spores, ringworm fungi are very contagious and can jump from person to person quite easily [10].
You can contract ringworm if you touch an infected person or share personal items, such as a comb or towel, with one. The disease can also be transmitted after touching an animal affected by ringworms or objects the animal has touched, including other animals. Cats and dogs are the most common sources, but fungi can be spread by all sorts of animals, including those on farms. Humans and animals can get ringworm after directly contacting fungi-bearing soil [9].
Other factors associated with contracting ringworm are living in damp, hot or humid areas, excessive sweating, playing contact sports, wearing tight clothes, having a depressed immune system, sharing clothing, bedding or washcloths with others, and having diabetes [10].
Can Mupirocin Cream be used for Ringworm?
Mupirocin is a topical antibiotic prescribed to treat skin bacterial infections. In most superficial infections, gram-positive bacteria are the major pathogens, and mupirocin is active against them. But ringworm isn’t a bacterial infection. It’s a fungal infection. It’s caused by dermatophytes [1, 6].
Curiously, Mupirocin also has antifungal activity, as it can inhibit the growth of several clinically essential fungi in vitro, including numerous pathogenic dermatophytes – the fungi that cause ringworm. In addition to its broad-spectrum antibacterial activity, mupirocin was found to be efficacious topically in a ringworm model in guinea pigs [11].
However, it is worth noting that these findings raise the question of whether Mupirocin might be used to treat ringworms. Further research must be conducted to verify whether it is effective and safe for treating ringworm. Thus, until we have additional evidence, anyone experiencing symptoms of ringworm should seek advice from a healthcare practitioner about what treatment is right for them.