Acne seems to have a lot of available treatments. Certainly compared to rosacea, acne has a bigger array of possible treatments that have been proven to be viable treatments.

One of the interesting things about rosacea is that even though it can look like acne for some, generally it cannot be treated by otherwise helpful acne treatments. Rosacea sufferers with sensitive skin may well find treatments like high dose accutane, Retin-A and chemical peels are just too harsh.

Acne Treatments Fail for Rosacea

Further adding to the poor crossover of acne and rosacea treatments was the news that an acne treatment Ziana didn’t perform well for rosacea, Aczone failing to impress for Rosacea as well as study that found that Zinc Sulfate Doesn’t Work for Rosacea.

Is Metrogel 2% Available?

Does this mean that we might soon see Metrogel 2% available for rosacea sufferers? Not directly no. I’m quite sure that Galderma and others have experimented with Metrogel 2%, but it would need to be proven to be significantly more effectively whilst also not more poorly tolerated than their flagship Metrogel 1%.

There is also a hope that another pharma might see some benefit in marketing a metronidazole 2 percent preparation, but the list of likely companies with the financial resources to secure patent and manufacturing of a new product is quite short.

Abstract

Efficacy of 2% Metronidazole Gel in Moderate Acne Vulgaris.

Indian J Dermatol. 2012 Jul;57(4):279-281.

Khodaeiani E, Fouladi RF, Yousefi N, Amirnia M, Babaeinejad S, Shokri J, Department of Dermatology, Sina Hospital, Tabriz University of Medical Sciences, Tabriz, Iran.

BACKGROUND: Acne vulgaris is an inflammatory disease of the pilosebaceous units. Various systemic and topical options are available for its treatment.

AIMS: This study aimed to evaluate the efficacy of 2% metronidazole gel in acne vulgaris.

MATERIALS AND METHODS: Double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled, split-face clinical trial. Seventy young adults with moderate acne vulgaris received 2% metronidazole gel on the right side of their face and placebo on the left side of their face twice daily for 8 weeks.

The number of inflamed and noninflamed facial lesions and side effects of treatment were documented on weeks 1, 2, 4, and 8. The patients’ overall satisfaction was recorded at the end of the study.

For statistical analysis we used the repeated-measures analysis, the chi-square test, Fisher’s exact test, and the independent-samples t-test as appropriate.

RESULTS: Counts of inflamed and noninflamed facial lesions were comparable between the two sides at baseline. The number of the lesions was significantly lower on the metronidazole-treated side at all follow-up visits.

Erythema and oily face decreased by 85.7% and 87.1%, respectively, on the metronidazole-treated side. Mild burning sensation and dryness on the metronidazole-treated side was reported by 3.4% and 22.9% of the patients, respectively.

Eighty-eight percent of the patients were satisfied with the results of treatment on the metronidazole-treated side.

CONCLUSIONS: Metronidazole gel (2%) is an effective, safe, and well-tolerated topical medication for moderate acne vulgaris.

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