Using a Hydroquinone/Tretinoin-based Skin Care System Before and After Electrodesiccation and Curettage of Superficial Truncal Basal Cell Carcinoma: A Multicenter, Randomized, Investigator-blind, Controlled Study of Short-term Healing.

OBJECTIVE

To evaluate the efficacy and tolerability of using a 4% hydroquinone/0.05% tretinoin skin care system compared with standard treatment of cleanser plus healing ointment to enhance aesthetic outcomes resulting from electrodesiccation and curettage treatment for superficial truncal basal cell carcinomas.

DESIGN

Multicenter, investigator-masked, randomized, parallel-group study. Patients received either the hydroquinone/tretinoin system or the standard treatment twice daily for three weeks before and after electrodesiccation and curettage (postelectrodesiccation and curettage, lesions received standard treatment until reepithelialization was >75 percent; assigned treatment regimens then resumed).

SETTING

Patients attending academic, institutional, and private dermatology clinics.

PARTICIPANTS

51 patients with 1 to 3 superficial truncal basal cell carcinomas.

MEASUREMENTS

The primary efficacy outcome was the incidence of treatment success for scar cosmesis, defined as a global assessment of excellent or good wound appearance (on a scale of excellent, good, fair, and poor), as evaluated by the investigators. After the end of the study, seven expert masked graders (dermatologists or plastic surgeons) reviewed the photographs from all of the lesions and also evaluated global assessment.

RESULTS

The incidence of treatment success in the hydroquinone/tretinoin and standard treatment groups was 72 percent versus 63 percent according to the masked investigators and 45 to 68 percent versus 20 to 44 percent, respectively, according to the seven expert masked graders. All the expert graders reported a higher incidence of treatment success with the hydroquinone/ tretinoin system than with standard treatment and this difference was statistically significant for five of the seven graders.

CONCLUSION

The adjunctive use of the hydroquinone/tretinoin skin care system may offer enhanced aesthetic results postelectrodesiccation and curettage compared with standard treatment. (J Clin Aesthetic Dermatol. 2009;2(5):38-43.).