TITLE:
Treatment of Acne Vulgaris with 5-Alpha Avocuta Cream 2% in Comparison with Tretinion Cream 0.025% (Single Blind Comparative Study)
AUTHORS:
Khalifa E. Sharquie, Hayder R. Al-Hamamy, Adil A. Noaimi, Ali F. Tahir
KEYWORDS:
Acne; 5-Alpha Avocuta; Tretinoin; Treatment; Iraq
JOURNAL NAME:
Journal of Cosmetics, Dermatological Sciences and Applications,
Vol.2 No.3,
September
17,
2012
ABSTRACT: Background: Acne vulgaris is a common skin disease. Its pathogenesis is multifactorial, and therapy can now be directed at many of these factors. Among these factors are androgen hormones which play an important role in the pathogenesis of acne. Accordingly,many antiandrogens have been developed to treat acne by systemic and topical ways. Five-Alpha Avocuta 2% cream is a new topical 5-alpha reductase inhibitor extracted from the tropical fruit “avocado”. Objectives: To evaluate the effectiveness and safety of 5-Alpha Avocuta cream and compare it to tretinoin 0.025% cream, in the treatment of acne vulgaris. Patients& Methods: This single blinded comparative study was done in Department of Dermatology– Baghdad Teaching Hospital - from July 2009 through October 2010. All demographic points related to the disease were obtained from each patient to evaluate severity of acne. Sixty-eight patients with acne were divided into two groups and instructed to apply the drugs for three months. Group A uses 5-Alpha avocuta 2% (Teen-derm K) cream and Group B uses tretinoin (Acretin) 0.025% cream. Severe acne was excluded from the study. The clinical improvement was evaluated by counting the number of inflammatory lesions before and after treatment and compare between them by paired t-test. Results: Fifty-eight patients completed the study, their age ranged from 12 - 30 years with a mean of 18.21 ± 4.64 years. In Group A there was a significant reduction of the mean number of papules from 29.7 before treatment to 15.5 after treatment (p