Type 2 diabetes cream an effective treatment for women with adult acne

Latest research has discovered a common Type 2 diabetes cream, Metformin, is a safe and effective treatment for adult females with acne—significantly decreasing both inflammatory (papules and nodules) and non-inflammatory acne lesions.

This Yanfei et al study included 21 female patients ranging between 18 and 24 years old and lasted for 12 weeks.

The results showed that inflammatory acne improved after 4 weeks, whereas non-inflammatory acne showed improvement at 12 weeks. Importantly, no adverse events were reported.

This indicates that metformin has a faster anti-inflammatory effect on the skin and a delayed effect on skin cell rejuvenation.

It is thought the reason why topical metformin improves acne may be due to a combination of its anti-inflammatory effects, decrease in sebaceous glands, and its regulation of the skin microbiome. Evidence also suggests the important role of the gut-skin microbiome in acne treatment.

Dr Phil Tong from the All About Acne team notes that while this is an exciting development, the study had a limited patient population, and further studies need to be done on the long-term effects plus its success in the treatment of males with acne.

Reference: Int J Dermatol 2023;62(6):759-63