Topical application of superoxide dismutase cream.

A superoxide dismutase (SOD) cream containing 0.6 mg/ml of bovine SOD was prepared. It was applied locally onto the skin and mucosal lesions caused by progressive systemic sclerosis (PSS), systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), Behçet's disease, herpes simplex and burns. The lesions and symptoms were rapidly improved in many cases after its administration, even when the symptoms were stabilized for several weeks before the treatment. Although the trial was open-labelled, the topical application of SOD was concluded to be effective for these conditions.