Acne: modern approaches to solving an old problem

Abstract

Background. Acne is one of the most common chronic dermatoses, which occurs in almost 8590% of the population. The disease manifests itself as polymorphic eruptions and is characterized by a recurrent and torpid course. Acne treatment is constantly improving, requires an integrated approach and long courses of therapy. Aims. To increase the effectiveness of acne therapy using new opportunities and promising methodological approaches using a combination of the therapeutic effects of platelet-rich plasma (PRP) and topical bacteriophage therapy. Materials and methods. The study included 30 patients with papulopustular acne of mild and moderate severity. Patients with mild acne were treated with PRP procedures as monotherapy. For moderate acne, PRP therapy was combined with regular applications of a staphylococcal bacteriophage (NPO Microgen, Nizhny Novgorod, Russia). The treatment was carried out on an outpatient basis: at least 3 procedures with an interval of 12 weeks (up to a maximum of 6 procedures within one year). The results were analyzed using descriptive statistics and the parametric Student's t-test. Data processing was carried out using the Biostat software. The value of the level of statistical significance of differences was taken as p 0.05. Results. Evaluation of the effectiveness of treatment was carried out on the basis of an analysis of the immediate outcomes of the disease, the dynamics of clinical symptoms and the severity of acne: regression of inflammatory elements of acne, a decrease in the phenomenon of seborrhea, improvement of the skin relief. As a result of the therapy, a transition to remission was noted in 16.6% of patients, an improvement in their condition 36.7%, a significant improvement 46.7%. Conclusions. An integrated approach combining PRP procedures and bacteriophage therapy can serve as a pathogenetically substantiated strategy for treating acne. A promising direction for further research is the development of new regimens and combinations of alternative therapeutic strategies using bacteriophages.