At the Maui Derm Hawaii 2023 conference, experts weighed the benefits of standard and new therapeutic options for treating acne vulgaris in adolescent and pediatric patients, according to an article published in Dermatology Times. The experts explained that several safe and effective treatments for the condition have been approved for patients aged 9 years and older—the retinoid trifarotene 0.005% cream for facial, chest, and back acne; the retinoid tazarotene 0.045% lotion; the oral tetracycline antibiotic minocycline for patients with acne vulgaris or nonnodular moderate-to-severe acne; and the tetracycline-class medication sarecycline for patients with inflammatory lesions of nonnodular moderate-to-severe acne vulgaris. Clascoterone cream 1% has also been approved for use in patients aged 12 years and older and has shown promising anti-inflammatory results after a 12-week regimen compared with patients taking placebo. For adolescent patients, the experts recommended the wider consideration of several types of laser therapy technologies—including blue light laser; pulsated dye laser; neodymium-doped yttrium aluminum garnet laser; erbium laser resurfacing; intense pulsated light therapy; photodynamic therapy; solid-state fractional 589-nm and 1,319-nm lasers; and the 1,726-nm laser systems, which has demonstrated a 90% rate of visible improvement after 6 months of treatment and a 75% rate of achieving near-clear or clear skin after 12 months of treatment. The experts emphasized that although the results were promising, patients should receive personalized treatment based on their age, lesion morphology, acne distribution, and the severity of their acne vulgaris.
June 08, 2023