PoreWise One finding · Human trial · 2024
Study title
Efficacy and Tolerability of Topical 0.1% Stabilized Bioactive Retinol for Photoaging: A Vehicle-Controlled Integrated Analysis
- Kind of evidence
- Human trial 2024 · 471 people · participants across six vehicle-controlled studies · PMID 38564380
- Measured outcome
- Skin effect
- Year
- 2024
- Who was studied
- 471 participants across six vehicle-controlled studies
- Sample size
- 471
- Measured outcome
- Across six vehicle-controlled studies pooled together (237 on retinol, 234 on vehicle), 0.1% stabilised retinol produced greater improvements from baseline in all signs of photoaging than the vehicle from week 4 through week 12.
- Certainty
- High
- Who was measured
- Women around 47 years old with mild-to-moderate photoaging, applying the product for 12 weeks.
- Study limits
- Pooled analysis of six studies.
Where it comes from
- Efficacy and Tolerability of Topical 0.1% Stabilized Bioactive Retinol for Photoaging: A Vehicle-Controlled Integrated Analysis
Published by Journal of Drugs in Dermatology (Farris P, et al.) · Last checked 2026-11-10
Ingredients it was measured on
Skin concerns studied
Other findings on the same ingredient or concern
- Skin effectProspective, randomized, double-blind assessment of topical bakuchiol and retinol for facial photoageing
In a 12-week randomized, double-blind trial of 44 people, both 0.5% bakuchiol and 0.5% retinol significantly reduced wrinkle surface area and hyperpigmentation; bakuchiol caused less scaling and stinging.
Human trial · 2019 · 44 people · adults with facial photoageing · Adults with facial photoageing using bakuchiol twice daily or retinol once daily for 12 weeks. · Small sample (44).
- Skin effectClassification by causes of dark circles and appropriate evaluation method of dark circles
In a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled split-face trial, 24 people with mixed-type dark circles used a test product containing 3% vitamin C, 0.1% vitamin A and 0.5% vitamin E for eight weeks. Brightness (L*), melanin index and image-analysis lightness improved significantly on the treated side compared with the placebo side.
Human trial · 2016 · 24 people · adults with mixed-type dark circles · Instrument-measured brightness, melanin index and skin thickness in mixed-type (pigment plus vascular) dark circles over eight weeks. · Three actives were used together. 24 people took part, all with the mixed type of dark circles; a separate 100-person study was used first to choose which measurements to trust. The abstract reports instrument readings.
- Legal limitsCommission Regulation (EU) 2024/996 amending Regulation (EC) No 1223/2009 — vitamin A (retinol, retinyl acetate, retinyl palmitate), Annex III entry 376
Retinol, retinyl acetate and retinyl palmitate are restricted under Annex III entry 376 of the EU Cosmetics Regulation: at most 0.05% retinol equivalent in body lotion and 0.3% in other leave-on and rinse-off products, with a mandatory label warning.
Official legal text · 2024 · Products placed on the EU market. Other jurisdictions set their own limits. · 2024 · This is a legal limit. · 2024
- IrritationImprovement of photoaged facial skin in middle-aged Japanese females by topical retinol (vitamin A alcohol): a vehicle-controlled, double-blind study
Nightly 0.075% retinol caused enough irritation for 3 of 57 participants to withdraw from the study; at 0.04% over 13 weeks irritation was reported as minimal, with less improvement in fine wrinkling.
Human trial · 2009 · 57 people · Middle-aged Japanese women with mild photoaging · Facial use once nightly in middle-aged Japanese women with mild photoaging, at 0.075% for 26 weeks and 0.04% for 13 weeks. · Withdrawals were counted. Both findings come from the same single-centre study.
- Skin effectImprovement of naturally aged skin with vitamin A (retinol)
A 0.4% retinol lotion applied to the arm up to three times a week for 24 weeks reduced fine wrinkling significantly more than its vehicle in elderly subjects: score change −1.64 (95% CI −2.06 to −1.22) against −0.08 (−0.17 to 0.01) on a 0–9 severity scale.
Human trial · 2007 · 36 people · Elderly adults, mean age 87 · Elderly adults, arms. · Thirty-six participants in two senior-care facilities, average age 87, an unusual population for cosmetic use. The glycosaminoglycan and procollagen measurements that suggest a mechanism came from subgroups of six and four participants, far too small to stand on their own.