NANTES, France—A recent study published in Journal of the European Academy of Dermatology and Venereology found a combination of retinaldehyde (RAL) 0.1 percent and glycolic acid (GA) 6 percent may be used in association with other topical anti-acne treatments with an excellent tolerance (2009;23(5):529-32).
A total of 397 women with acne (aged between 30 and 40 years old) were included in the open multi-centric study. They had to apply cream containing RAL/GA for 90 days without stopping their previous acne treatment (except topical retinoids). The tolerance was the main criteria and the second one is the efficacy, which was assessed by counting inflammatory and retentional lesions after 30 and 90 days of treatment.
Researchers found, used alone or in association with other anti-acne treatments, RAL/GA was considered to be highly tolerated. A significant decrease in both inflammatory and retentional lesions between day 0 and day 90 indicates that RAL/GA can be used as monotherapy for mild acne or could potentate the efficiency of other anti-acne products used at the same time by patients suffering from moderate acne. Complaints about side-effects were rare. The subjective evaluation of the preparation's efficacy by investigators and patients was strongly favorable.