Abstract
In the treatment of acne vulgaris, the need to promote proper use of antimicrobials has been increasing. This study involved 18 dermatologists with expertise in acne who were provided a questionnaire regarding their use of antimicrobials in the treatment of facial acne vulgaris, and the medical records of their patients were examined to review the actual prescriptions of topical and oral antimicrobials. The results revealed typical usage duration of antimicrobials was less than 3 months, although continuous prescription of topical and oral antimicrobials for more than 3 months was reported by 16 and 11 dermatologists, respectively. The reasons the antimicrobial prescription exceeded 3 months were most commonly “strong request by the patient” for topical antimicrobials and “severe disease with insufficient improvement” for oral antimicrobials. According to the medical record review, among all cases in which antimicrobials were prescribed at the initial visit, the duration of continuation was “90 days” in 61 of 81 cases (75.3%) for topical antimicrobials, and in 78 of 82 cases (95.1%) for oral antimicrobials. Successful shift to maintenance therapy was attained in 35 of the 61 cases (57.4%) with 90-day continuation of topical antimicrobial use, and in 44 of the 78 cases (56.4%) with 90-day continuation of oral antimicrobial use. The study found that, although prolonged antimicrobial use is unavoidable in some patients, the acne experts were conscious of the proper use of antimicrobials in treating acne, and had shifted to maintenance therapy for more than half of the cases.
