Short-contact therapy with 0.1% tazarotene cream in patients with acne vulgaris: a multicenter, randomized, controlled clinical trial.

Abstract

Objective To estimate the efficacy,local side effect of short-contact therapy with 0.1% tazarotene cream in patients with acne vulgaris and its impact on the relapse of acne vulgaris.Methods A multi-center,randomized,controlled study was carried out in 187 patients with acne vulgaris.Patients were randomly divided into three groups to receive 8(n=62)or 12(n=64)weeks of short-contact therapy or 8 weeks(n=61)of conventional therapy with 0.1%tazarotene cream.The global acne grading system (GAGS)was used to estimate the severity of acne at the baseline,end of treatment,2,4 and 8 weeks after treatment.Local side effects and relapse of acne vulgaris were also observed in patients.Results The incidence of local side effects was 11.48%,12.90%and 38-33%in 8-week,12-week and conventional group,respectively,with statistical difference among the three groups (X2=13.31,P 0.05).A low relapse rate of acne vulgaris was observed in the 12-week group,and there was a significant difference among the three groups on week 2,4 and 8 after the treatment(X2=3.29,3.78 and 5.85,respectively,P<0.05 or<0.01).Conclusioils Compared with conventional therapy,short-contact therapy with 0.1%tazarotene cream exhibits fewer local side effects but similar efficacy in acne vulgaris,and to extend the treatment course may lead to a decrease in relapse and increase in efficacy. Key words: Acne vulgaris; Administration; cutaneous; Tazarotene