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Meta-Analysis
. 2020 Jan;19(1):10-21.
doi: 10.1111/jocd.13197. Epub 2019 Oct 25.

Efficacy of photodynamic therapy for the treatment of inflammatory acne vulgaris: A systematic review and meta-analysis

Xiaoqiong Tang  1 , Changchang Li  2 , Shuqi Ge  3 , Zhiwei Chen  2 , Liming Lu  3
Affiliations
Meta-Analysis

Efficacy of photodynamic therapy for the treatment of inflammatory acne vulgaris: A systematic review and meta-analysis

Xiaoqiong Tang et al. J Cosmet Dermatol. 2020 Jan.

Abstract

Background: Photodynamic therapy (PDT) has emerged as the effective new method to treat acne vulgaris. However, no meta-analysis has been published on PDT for acne vulgaris currently.

Objective: The current meta-analysis and systematic review were carried out to assess the safety and effect of PDT on treating acne vulgaris.

Methods: The electronic databases, including EMBASE, Cochrane Library, and MEDLINE, were systemically retrieved to identify relevant articles for meta-analysis. The primary outcome included mean percentage reduction in the inflammatory lesion count (MPRILC), while the secondary outcome included the total effective response (TER).

Results: Altogether 13 randomized controlled trials (RCTs) involving 701 subjects had been enrolled into the current meta-analysis. PDT had certain effect on acne vulgaris in terms of the outcomes of MPRILC (MD: 15.97, 95% CI: 11.93 to 20.00, P < .00001) and TER (RR: 1.55, 95% CI: 1.38-1.74, P < .00001). Totally, 6 articles had been evaluated to have a low bias risk overall. Results of sensitivity and subgroup analyses were similar to meta-analysis results, reflecting the result reliability in this meta-analysis.

Conclusions: PDT is beneficial for improving the clinical efficacy of inflammatory acne vulgaris, which can be widely used to treat inflammatory acne vulgaris in clinic.

Keywords: acne vulgaris; meta-analysis; photodynamic therapy; photosensitizers.

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References

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