Clocortolone Pivalate: uses, dosing, side effects & brands
Clocortolone Pivalate is a corticosteroid sold in the U.S. under 2 brand and generic names, for facial dermatoses, foot dermatoses and hand dermatoses. Below: what the FDA label says, every product that contains it, what the pills look like, and its recall record.
Key facts
- Drug class
- Corticosteroid
- Treats
- Facial Dermatoses, Foot Dermatoses and Hand Dermatoses
- Available as
- Topical
- Sold as
- 2 products — Clocortolone Pivalate and Cloderm
- Prescription?
- Prescription only
- Generic available?
- Yes
- What the pharmacy pays
- about $5 per gm — not your price
Get treated for Clocortolone Pivalate conditions online
Licensed online providers — consult & get prescribed if eligible.
Advertising disclosure: We may earn a commission, at no extra cost to you. This never affects our ratings. Details
How clocortolone pivalate is dosed
From the FDA label for Clocortolone Pivalate (application ANDA206370). Other clocortolone pivalate products — different forms, different strengths — are dosed differently. Follow the label for the one you were prescribed.
Apply clocortolone pivalate cream USP, 0.1% sparingly to the affected areas three times a day and rub in gently. Occlusive dressings may be used for the management of psoriasis or recalcitrant conditions. If an infection develops, the use of occlusive dressings should be discontinued and appropriate anti-microbial therapy instituted.
Clocortolone Pivalate side effects
The following local adverse reactions are reported infrequently with topical corticosteroids, but may occur more frequently with the use of occlusive dressings. These reactions are listed in an approximate decreasing order of occurrence: Burning Itching Irritation Dryness Folliculitis Hypertrichosis Acneform eruptions Hypopigmentation Perioral dermatitis Allergic contact dermatitis Maceration of the skin Secondary infection Skin atrophy Striae Miliaria
Who shouldn’t take clocortolone pivalate
Topical corticosteroids are contraindicated in those patients with a history of hypersensitivity to any of the components of the preparation.
Every clocortolone pivalate product we track (2)
Same active ingredient — different manufacturer, form, price and FDA recall record. That last one is what our independent score measures.
| # | Drug | Rating | Type | Form | Generic? | Pharmacy pays | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 70/100 | Prescription | Topical | Generic | $5 | View → | |
| 2 | Not yet rated | Prescription | Topical | Generic | $5 | View → |
Clocortolone Pivalate recalls
From the FDA Enforcement database. A recall covers specific lots — not the drug as a whole.
Clocortolone Pivalate and breastfeeding
From LactMed, the US National Library of Medicine’s Drugs and Lactation Database — quoted, not rewritten.
Full LactMed record for clocortolone pivalate: levels in milk, effects in breastfed infants, and the drugs it would consider insteadTopical clocortolone has not been studied during breastfeeding. Since only extensive application of the most potent corticosteroids may cause systemic effects in the mother, it is unlikely that short-term application of topical corticosteroids would pose a risk to the breastfed infant by passage into breastmilk. However, it would be prudent to use the least potent drug on the smallest area of skin possible. It is particularly important to ensure that the infant's skin does not come into direct contact with the areas of skin that have been treated. Only water-miscible cream or gel products should be applied to the breast because ointments may expose the infant to high levels of mineral paraffins via licking. Any topical corticosteroid should be wiped off thoroughly prior to nursing if it is being applied to the breast or nipple area.
National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, record revised January 18, 2021. LactMed states its information is not a substitute for professional judgement.
What people report to the FDA about clocortolone pivalate
The FDA Adverse Event Reporting System (FAERS) collects reports from patients and clinicians. It holds 38 reports naming clocortolone pivalate, and the FDA flagged 37% of those reports as serious. The effects reported most often — leaving out reports about overdose, misuse or the condition being treated, which dominate the raw list for common medicines:
- rash6 reports
- pruritus5 reports
- cardiac disorder3 reports
- dermatitis atopic3 reports
- eczema3 reports
- erythema3 reports
- headache3 reports
- skin exfoliation3 reports
Read these as a signal, not a rate. A report does not mean clocortolone pivalate caused the effect — anyone can file one, and many describe people taking several medicines for several conditions. Crucially there is no denominator: FAERS does not record how many people took the drug, so these counts cannot be turned into “X% of patients” — a bigger number often just means a more widely used or more talked-about drug. Duplicates exist, and publicity drives reporting. For what is actually established, read the FDA label section above.
Source: openFDA drug/event (FAERS), retrieved July 25, 2026.
Related calculators
Frequently asked questions
What is clocortolone pivalate?
Clocortolone Pivalate is a corticosteroid used to treat Facial Dermatoses, Foot Dermatoses, Hand Dermatoses, Inflammation.
What kind of drug is clocortolone pivalate?
The FDA classifies clocortolone pivalate as a corticosteroid. Corticosteroids mimic the body's natural stress hormone cortisol: they enter cells and bind a glucocorticoid receptor that switches off genes for inflammatory chemicals, calming swelling, redness, and an overactive immune response. If you are checking whether it is safe to combine with something else, the class is what matters — two drugs from the same class usually should not be stacked.
Can you take clocortolone pivalate with other medicines?
It depends on the medicine. We check it against the FDA labels rather than guessing: our interaction checker searches each drug's own label for the other and quotes what it says, naming the section it came from. Run clocortolone pivalate against whatever else you take — and remember that a label not naming a drug is not the same as that combination being safe.
What brand names is clocortolone pivalate sold under?
We track 2 clocortolone pivalate-containing products in the U.S.: Clocortolone Pivalate and Cloderm. They are the same active ingredient; they differ in form, manufacturer, price and FDA recall record.
What forms does clocortolone pivalate come in?
Across the brands we track, clocortolone pivalate is currently marketed as topical, per the FDA's National Drug Code Directory. Each form is dosed differently — follow the label for the exact product you were prescribed.
Is there a generic clocortolone pivalate?
Yes. Our catalog lists 1 generic clocortolone pivalate product alongside the brand versions. A generic has the same active ingredient and must meet the FDA's bioequivalence standard; it usually costs less. Ask your pharmacist which one your plan covers.
Has clocortolone pivalate been recalled?
The FDA's Enforcement database lists 1 recall record whose product description mentions clocortolone pivalate. The most recent: Cloderm (clocortolone pivalate) Cream (Apr 23, 2024). A recall applies to specific lots, not to the drug as a whole — check the record for the affected lot numbers.
Cite this page
- APA
- pharmaranks. (2026, July 24). Clocortolone Pivalate: uses, dosing, side effects & brands. https://pharmaranks.com/drugs/clocortolone-pivalate
- MLA
- “Clocortolone Pivalate: uses, dosing, side effects & brands.” pharmaranks, 24 July 2026, https://pharmaranks.com/drugs/clocortolone-pivalate.
We summarise public FDA and NIH sources — for a clinical claim, cite the primary source we link to as well.
Sources: FDA openFDA drug label, National Drug Code Directory, and Enforcement (recall) database. This page reproduces public FDA data and is not medical advice. Dosing is set by your prescriber.
Read the full FDA label for clocortolone pivalate on DailyMed (NIH) ↗.