Spironolactone in the treatment of acne

Related Links

Informative Articles

How a 25 year old Asian Man Stumbled Upon a Sweet and Delicious Cure For Acne That Works Fast And Permanently!
When dealing with acne, we somehow have the gut feeling that our diets do affect us. Well, you're absolutely correct! It’s a proven fact because the toxic substances contained in certain food will cause your liver and kidney to overwork. Thus the...

Masturbate and Feel Good
"Masturbation ... is not approved of the Lord nor this church, regardless of what may be said by those whose 'norms' are lower", President Kimball of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints (1981) "Every sperm is sacred. Every sperm...

Natural Beauty: What is it really?
Natural beauty is the ideal many people strive to achieve when they purchase make-up, creams, shampoos and other forms of cosmetics. But what really constitutes natural beauty, and how can it be achieved? Many consumers, in an attempt to cleanse,...

Shoulder and Back Acne
If you suffer from shoulder and back acne, I have found a treatment that may help. Acuzine is a new non-prescription acne treatment. Acne is caused from imbalances and impurities within the body, and that's why we treat the problem an internal...

Use Essential Fatty Acid To Help You Eliminate Your Acne
To eliminate or clear your face of acne it will require you take a variety of health steps. The use of essential fatty acids is but one step. I have identified 10 different steps but will only discuss one step in this article - using essential...

How-what-who | Aqua | Acne

Web	www.poombatta.com

Spironolactone in the treatment of acne

In his article on acne published recently in the New England Journal of Medicine James (1) mentions that androgen antagonist spironolacton is often useful in women with hyperandrogenism. However, it would be important to point out, that the effectiveness of this treatment cannot be determined due to the small sample populations involved in the trials, as has been shown in recent metaanalysis. (2) It should be also emphasized that although the long-term use of spironolactone in the treatment of acne in women appears to be safe, its side-effects seem to be high. (3) On the other hand, it is worth mentioning that spironolactone in addition to its antiandrogenic effects might also have antiinflammatory potential. (4) This emphasizes the need for further properly designed trials with relevant outcomes to provide robust estimates of the size and mechanism of any treatment effects. Because of its long half-life spironolactone should be given once daily and not in divided doses as recommended by James. This might

increase the compliance which is important in prolonged therapy to achieve maximal benefits. (5)

1. James WD. Clinical practice. Acne. N Engl J Med 2005;352:1463-72.

2. Farquhar C, Lee O, Toomath R, Jepson R. Spironolactone versus placebo or in combination with steroids for hirsutism and/or acne. Cochrane Database Syst Rev 2003;(4):CD000194.

3. Shaw JC, White LE. Long-term safety of spironolactone in acne: results of an 8-year followup study. J Cutan Med Surg 2002;6:541-5.

4. Hansen PR, Rieneck K, Bendtzen K. Spironolactone inhibits production of proinflammatory cytokines by human mononuclear cells. Immunol Lett 2004;91:87-91.

5. McEvoy B, Nydegger R, Williams G. Factors related to patient compliance in the treatment of acne vulgaris. Int J Dermatol 2003;42:274-80.

About the author:

Dr. Michal R. Pijak is a consultant in rheumatology, allergy and clinical immunology at the University Hospital in Bratislava, Slovakia.