A review of oral treatments for melasma

Abstract

This article aims to evaluate current literature reporting on the efficacy and safety of oral agents in melasma management. An electronic search of publications via PUBMED database was conducted. The search only included clinical trials in the English language until 1 November 2019. This review is limited by small number of high-quality prospective studies each with small patient numbers. Significant heterogeneity in study design concerning study duration, concurrent treatments and outcome measures was present. Irrespective of melasma duration, oral tranexamic acid 500 mg daily appears to be a safe and effective treatment either as monotherapy or as an adjunct treatment.