Dermatologist tutorial helps minimize acne Rx side effects

(HealthDay)—For Korean patients with acne, fixed-dose combination adapalene 0.1 percent and benzoyl peroxide 2.5 percent gel (A-BPO) is more efficacious than benzoyl peroxide (BPO), with similar skin irritation levels that can be improved with dermatologists' tutorials for A-BPO application, according to a study published online June 20 in the Journal of Dermatology.

Hyuck Hoon Kwon, M.D., from the Seoul National University College of Medicine in South Korea, and colleagues compared A-BPO gel with BPO in terms of efficacy and tolerability in Korean patients with acne in a single-blind controlled, split-face trial for 12 weeks. Eighty-five patients were included; each half facial side was randomized to either A-BPO or BPO. During initial assignment, patients were further randomized to dermatological tutorial (DT) or non-tutorial (NT) subgroups depending on the presence of dermatologists' tutorials for application methods for the A-BPO facial side.

The researchers found that A-BPO gel outperformed BPO, with better efficacy in success rates and lesion counts from one week. Compared with BPO and previous A-BPO data from Caucasians, A-BPO proved significantly less tolerable. Clinical data were confirmed by bioengineering measures. Compared with the NT subgroup, the DT subgroup achieved much better tolerability, with comparable therapeutic efficacies.

"In conclusion, A-BPO demonstrated higher efficacies in acne compared with BPO in Korean patients, while skin irritation levels were notable concurrently," the authors write. "Dermatologists' education for application methods would significantly decrease these side effects, maintaining superior efficacy levels."