Topical 5-Aminolevulinic Acid Photodynamic Therapy in the Treatment of Acne Vulgaris: A Study of Clinical Efficacy and Adverse Reactions

Abstract

Photodynamic therapy (PDT) has recently been applied to the treatment of several skin disorders. This study was performed to evaluate the efficacy of topical 5-aminolevulinic acid (ALA) PDT for intractable acne vulgaris. We tried it on ten patients with intractable acne vulgaris on the face and observed both the effects and adverse reactions. In one case, severe pigmentation occurred after test irradiation, so we canceled the treatment. The other nine patients had improvements of 1 to 2 grades on the Burton scale a month after just one exposure. As adverse reactions, erythema lasting for 1–4 days was observed in all cases in the irradiation region. One patient had a strong burning sensation and swelling for two days. In addition, the erythema was partially accompanied by excoriation in 5 cases and by accepted transient exacerbation of acne in 7 cases. Our data suggest that topical ALA-PDT may be effective for intractable acne vulgaris, but the problem of how we prevent adverse reactions remains.