Sodium L‐ascorbyl‐2‐phosphate 5% lotion for the treatment of acne vulgaris: a randomized, double‐blind, controlled trial

Summary Background Antioxidants are becoming increasingly important in the treatment of skin disease. In addition to their known anti‐inflammatory effects, antioxidants may act to prevent the oxidation of sebum which has been proposed to be comedogenic in acne patients. Sodium L‐ascorbyl‐2‐phosphate (APS) is a stable vitamin C derivative and highly effective antioxidant that has demonstrated efficacy in acne in open label studies. Objective To evaluate the efficacy and safety of APS 5% lotion for the treatment of acne in a blinded controlled study. Methods A total of 50 subjects were randomized in a double‐blind controlled trial to receive APS 5% lotion or vehicle for 12 weeks. Evaluation included an Investigator’s Global Assessment Score, a Subjects’ Global Assessment Score, lesion counts, cutaneous tolerability, and adverse events. Results APS 5% lotion demonstrated statistically significant improvement when compared to vehicle in all of the parameters measured. The adverse event frequency and cutaneous tolerability profile for APS 5% lotion were similar to vehicle. Limitations Adjunctive topical or oral agents and their impact on acne were not studied in this trial. Conclusions This study demonstrates that 5% sodium L‐ascorbyl‐2‐phosphate is efficacious as monotherapy for the treatment of acne. APS 5% lotion offers a novel addition to our current acne armamentarium.