Department of Dermatology and Venereology, Faculty of Medicine, Hasanuddin University, Makassar, Indonesia.
Int J Dermatol. 2021 Aug;60(8):1013-1018. doi: 10.1111/ijd.15573. Epub 2021 Apr 19.
The antimelanogenesis effect of topical and oral glutathione has been shown in several in vitro and clinical studies. However, whether combination of topical and oral glutathione is superior to topical or oral monotherapy is unknown. This study aimed to compare the skin-whitening effect of topical and oral glutathione combination therapy against topical and oral monotherapy.
This double-blind randomized controlled study was done on 46 participants who were divided into two equal groups. Each group received oral placebo and oral glutathione, respectively. All participants were also instructed to apply topical placebo and glutathione to each facial side, respectively. Colorimeter examination was done biweekly using mexameter and chromameter for 8 weeks. One-way ANOVA test was used to compare the results of all groups.
The combination group showed significantly lower melanin index (MI) and L* score to placebo (P < 0.05). The mean MI and L* score of the combination group were the highest of all groups. Statistical significance of difference in L* score was reached when the combination group was compared to the oral placebo and topical glutathione group (P < 0.05).
This study showed that topical and oral glutathione were effective skin-lightening agents. Furthermore, combination of topical and oral glutathione might be superior to monotherapy.
局部和口服谷胱甘肽的抗黑色素生成作用已在几项体外和临床研究中得到证实。然而，局部和口服谷胱甘肽联合治疗是否优于局部或口服单药治疗尚不清楚。本研究旨在比较局部和口服谷胱甘肽联合治疗与局部和口服单药治疗的皮肤美白效果。
这项双盲随机对照研究纳入了 46 名参与者，将其分为两组，每组分别接受口服安慰剂和口服谷胱甘肽。所有参与者还被指示分别将局部安慰剂和谷胱甘肽涂抹于每侧面部。在 8 周内每两周使用 mexameter 和 chromameter 进行一次比色计检查。使用单因素方差分析比较所有组的结果。
联合组与安慰剂相比，黑色素指数（MI）和 L评分明显降低（P<0.05）。联合组的平均 MI 和 L评分在所有组中最高。当与口服安慰剂和局部谷胱甘肽组相比时，联合组的 L*评分差异具有统计学意义（P<0.05）。
本研究表明，局部和口服谷胱甘肽是有效的皮肤美白剂。此外，局部和口服谷胱甘肽联合治疗可能优于单药治疗。
