Oral antibiotics

Abstract

Propionibacterium acnes (P. Acnes) plays a role in acne pathogenesis. In 1954 oral tetracyclines were first evaluated in acne, others followed. The compounds used have both antibacterial and anti-inflammatory properties. Oral antibiotics were and are still widely used for the treatment of moderate to severe inflammatory acne. Five million prescriptions were written for this purpose in the USA between 1996 and 1998 (1.4 million for isotretinoin; [1]). Although the efficacy of antibiotics is well known to the clinician the study data supporting this impression are not as well founded as with other acne therapeutics. This is due to a variety of methodological problems, such as inconsistent information on baseline characteristics, heterogeneity of assessment schemes and outcome criteria, differing dosages, and treatment duration [2-5].