Evaluation of 0.75% metronidazole gel in acne--a double-blind study.

Author(s): Tong D, Peters W, Barnetson RS

Affiliation(s): Department of Dermatology, Royal Prince Alfred Hospital, Camperdown, NSW, Australia.

Publication date & source: 1994-05, Clin Exp Dermatol., 19(3):221-3.

Publication type: Clinical Trial; Randomized Controlled Trial

Metronidazole, an imidazole, is an antibiotic with established efficacy against anaerobic bacteria. To date, however, there are no published data concerning the efficacy of topical metronidazole in the treatment of acne. This randomized, double-blind prospective clinical study of 96 patients was performed to investigate the efficacy and tolerability of 0.75% metronidazole gel vs. placebo in the treatment of mild to moderate acne. The results of this study showed no significant benefit in using 0.75% metronidazole gel over placebo in reducing counts of inflamed and non-inflamed lesions of acne. There was also no statistically significant difference between the two groups at any stage in the trial when skin tolerability was assessed.