Efficacy and tolerance of superoxidized solution in the treatment of mild to moderate inflammatory acne. A double-blinded, placebo- controlled, parallel-group, randomized, clinical trial

Introduction: Superoxidized solution (SOS) is an electrochemically processed aqueous solution manufactured from pure water and sodium chloride. Inflammatory skin disorders have all improved their outcomes with the use of SOS. These indications suggest that SOS could be useful in acne. Methods: A total of 89 patients were enrolled in this double blinded, clinical trial. Patients presented with 10--50 inflammatory lesions (papules and pustules) and an absence of nodulocystic lesions. Results: Improvement was excellent in nine patients (23%) using SOS, compared with five patients (21%) using benzoyl peroxide (BP) (p = 0.378); good in 21 patients (54%) using SOS and 12 patients (50%) using BP (p = 0.794), compared with four patients (18%) taking placebo (p = 0.001); and fair in six patients (15%) using SOS and five patients (21%) using BP (p = 0.415), compared with 12 patients taking placebo (55%) (p = 0.014). In three patients using SOS (8%) the response was poor, compared with two patients (8%) using BP (p = 0.725) and six patients (27%) taking placebo (p = 0.075). We did not need to change a dose during the study period and no systemic effect was observed. Conclusions: We found that SOS is an important choice to treat inflammatory acne, comparable with benzoyl peroxide; however, a larger sample is needed.