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Drug Class
Antifungal
Common Uses
- Fungal Skin Infections
Common Brand Names
Haicneal, Nizoral
Overview
Ketoconazole is an antifungal medicine. It's used to treat skin infections caused by a fungus (yeast). It can also prevent them coming back.
It treats different types of fungal infections including:
- athlete's foot
- jock itch, an infection in the groin area
- sweat rash (intertrigo), a rash that usually appears in folds of skin
- dandruff and seborrhoeic dermatitis, where your scalp or other areas of your skin become scaly and dry or greasy
- pityriasis versicolor, sometimes called tinea versicolor, where small patches of skin become scaly and change colour
Ketoconazole works by killing the fungus that causes the infection.
Ketoconazole is available as a cream or shampoo.
Important Facts
- Ketoconazole usually works within 2 to 3 weeks for most fungal infections, but it can take 6 weeks for athlete's foot to get better.
- The most common side effect of ketoconazole cream and shampoo is irritated skin.
- For most infections, you'll usually use the cream once or twice a day and the shampoo twice a week.
- Some people use ketoconazole shampoo every 1 to 2 weeks to help stop dandruff coming back.
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