Oral isotretinoin followed by triple therapy may be the most effective treatment option for patients with acne vulgaris, according to a recent meta-analysis published by Huang et al in the Annals of Family Medicine. Investigators analyzed the results of 221 trials involving 65,601 patients who received 37 different therapeutic interventions and discovered that oral isotretinoin in combination with a topical antibiotic, benzoyl peroxide, and a topical retinoid was the most effective treatment option. Further, oral or topical retinoid monotherapies were found to be comparable at treating inflammatory lesions, but oral or topical antibiotics were less effective at reducing noninflammatory lesions.
August 02, 2023