Objective: To compare the efficacy of microdermabrasion and glycolic acid peeling in the treatment of acne vulgaris in skin of color. Study Design: Quasi-experimental study. Place and Duration of Study: Department of Dermatology, Pak Emirates Military Hospital, Rawalpindi Pakistan, from May 2022 to Nov 2022. Methodology: A total of 150 patients of both gender with age 15-30 years and diagnosis of Acne Vulgaris (mild, moderate or severe) for more than 4 weeks were included. Patients who were already using oral/topical acne treatment including isotretinoin, other skin diseases and polycystic ovarian syndrome were excluded. Patients were divided into the glycolic acid peel Group (Group-A) and the micro-dermabrasion Group (Group-B). The procedure was repeated monthly for 3 months, in both Groups and assessment was done at the end of 3 months on a specially designed Performa. Results: The mean age of the patients was 21.2±3.3 years and 21.4±3.3 years in Group-A and B, respectively. The mean duration of complaints was 11.3±1.3 weeks in Group-A while 9.7±1.1 weeks in Group B. GAG score for acne assessment was used to see the response of treatment in each Group. The females had a better response as compared to males. Moreover, the efficacy of glycolic acid peel was slightly better in the younger age Group while the efficacy of microdermabrasion showed better results in the older age Group (21 years to 30 years). The microdermabrasion was found to be more efficacious as compared to glycolic acid peeling (p=0.005). Conclusion: The efficacy of microdermabrasion was statistically significant..
Mubashar et al. (Thu,) studied this question.