PoreWise One finding · Human trial · 1992
Study title
A comparative study of gluconolactone versus benzoyl peroxide in the treatment of acne
- Kind of evidence
- Human trial 1992 · 150 people · people with mild-to-moderate acne · PMID 1303072
- Measured outcome
- Skin effect
- Year
- 1992
- Who was studied
- 150 people with mild-to-moderate acne.
- Sample size
- 150
- Measured outcome
- In a double-blind trial of 150 people with mild-to-moderate acne, a 14% gluconolactone solution and a 5% benzoyl peroxide lotion each reduced inflamed and non-inflamed lesion counts significantly more than the vehicle lotion, and fewer side-effects were reported with gluconolactone than with benzoyl peroxide.
- Certainty
- Moderate
- Who was measured
- Inflamed and non-inflamed acne lesion counts, and local side-effects, in mild-to-moderate acne.
- Study limits
- Confidence intervals or treatment duration. The trial is from 1992 and used a 14% leave-on solution. It compares gluconolactone with benzoyl peroxide and vehicle.
Where it comes from
- A comparative study of gluconolactone versus benzoyl peroxide in the treatment of acne
Published by Australasian Journal of Dermatology (Hunt MJ, Barnetson RS) · Last checked 2026-11-11
Ingredients it was measured on
Skin concerns studied
Other findings on the same ingredient or concern
- Skin effectComparative study of buffered 50% glycolic acid (pH 3.0) + 0.5% salicylic acid solution vs Jessner's solution in patients with acne vulgaris
In a prospective, randomized, evaluator-blind, split-face trial of 20 patients with acne vulgaris, two 50% glycolic acid + 0.5% salicylic acid peels significantly reduced total lesion count (P<0.001) and produced fewer side effects than Jessner's solution.
Human trial · 2018 · 20 people · patients with acne vulgaris · Patients with acne vulgaris receiving two 50% glycolic acid + 0.5% salicylic acid peels 2 weeks apart (one side vs Jessner's solution on the other). · Small sample (20) and a combination peel (glycolic + salicylic acid); this is a procedural peel.
- Skin effectTopical azelaic acid, salicylic acid, nicotinamide, sulphur, zinc and fruit acid (alpha-hydroxy acid) for acne
Against topical tretinoin, salicylic acid showed similar values in overall acne improvement (RR 1.00, 95% CI 0.92 to 1.09; one trial, 46 participants). The review graded the certainty of that finding as low.
Review article · 2020 · 46 people · People with mild to moderate acne, mostly aged 12 to 30 · Topical salicylic acid for mild to moderate acne. Most participants in the review were 12 to 30 years old, and most studies ran longer than eight weeks. · The review covers 49 trials with 3880 participants, salicylic acid appears in a small part of them: 41 to 86 participants per comparison. Every salicylic acid comparison was graded low or very low certainty.
- Skin effectGuidelines of care for the management of acne vulgaris (2024)
The 2024 American Academy of Dermatology acne guideline lists topical salicylic acid as a conditional recommendation. Strong recommendations in the same guideline go to benzoyl peroxide, topical retinoids, topical antibiotics and oral doxycycline.
Clinical guideline · 2024 · Acne vulgaris in people aged nine and older, as covered by the guideline's scope.
- IrritationTopical azelaic acid, salicylic acid, nicotinamide, sulphur, zinc and fruit acid (alpha-hydroxy acid) for acne
Trials of topical salicylic acid for acne reported application-site reactions such as scaling and redness.
Review article · 2020 · People with mild to moderate acne in the included trials · Topical salicylic acid in acne trials, mainly leave-on use over eight weeks or longer. · The review graded the salicylic acid adverse-event comparisons as very low certainty.
- Skin effectEfficacy and Safety of Melaleuca alternifolia (Tea Tree) Oil for Acne — A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis
A 2026 systematic review and meta-analysis pooled seven clinical studies of tea tree oil for acne (445 patients in total). Acne severity was lower with tea tree oil than with the control treatments (pooled odds ratio 0.74, 95% CI 0.63 to 0.88), adverse events were mostly local and mild, and the reviewers judged the overall risk of bias as low.
Review article · 2026 · 445 people · patients across seven clinical studies of acne · Acne severity across seven clinical studies of topical tea tree oil, the condition that most often starts in the teenage years. · The pooled result is a modest reduction in severity. The seven studies used different tea tree oil formulations and the follow-up was short; the authors call for larger trials with standardised formulas. It also reports more mild itching, dryness and stinging in some comparisons.