Treating acne with twice-daily clascoterone cream increases skin moisturization

Key takeaways:

• After 2 weeks, clascoterone-treated skin had higher hydration levels compared with nontreated skin.
• The researchers also observed no difference in transepidermal water loss.

Clascoterone cream 1% used twice daily for 2 weeks had no effect on transepidermal water loss of the skin barrier and increased facial moisturization, according to a study.

“Many acne medications are drying and cause irritation early on in the treatment process as well as ongoing irritation with time,” Zoe Diana Draelos, MD, president of Dermatology Consulting Services, PLLC, told Healio. “In this particular study, we were looking to show that there was no irritation with clascoterone and that the vehicle for clascoterone did not cause any difficulties.”

Approved in 2020, clascoterone cream 1% is a topical androgen receptor indicated for the treatment of acne vulgaris in patients aged 12 years and older. The authors evaluated the cream in a single-center, split-face study by randomly assigning 50 patients (mean age, 31.1 years) to receive approximately 0.5 g of clascoterone cream 1% to the right or left side of the face for 2 weeks.

After 2 weeks, corneometry readings showed that the clascoterone-treated side of the face had higher hydration levels compared with the nontreated side of the face (131.3 + 42.9 vs. 113.9 + 36.6; P < .001). According to Draelos, this means that clascoterone cream 1% may have a mild moisturization benefit on the skin.

Additionally, the researchers observed no difference in transepidermal water loss between the treated and untreated skin, indicating no barrier damage.

“Clascoterone cream does not damage the skin barrier, and it may even have some slight barrier improvement effects due to the vehicle,” Draelos said. “It is also compatible with other medications, such as benzoyl peroxide or a retinoid.”

The investigators also found that clascoterone cream 1% did not cause dryness, erythema or irritation at any time point, signaling a favorable tolerability profile, which, according to Draelos, is “a little bit unique in the acne market.”

“This gives us confidence that patients won’t experience difficulty using the product either short term or long term,” Draelos said. “If you have a patient that has very sensitive skin, or a patient that has to use multiple topical treatments, clascoterone cream 1% can be used safely without difficulty.”

For more information:

Zoe Diana Draelos, MD, can be reached at dcs@northstate.net.