Effects of acupuncture on chronic idiopathic pruritus: an uncontrolled pilot study evaluating inflammatory changes with treatment.

Background Conduct a pilot study addressing the efficacy of acupuncture in the treatment of chronic idiopathic pruritus to aid in the design of a larger clinical trial. Routine laboratory tests to assess systemic inflammation in addition to subjective patient surveys were performed provide documentation of efficacy of treatment. Methods Patients with chronic pruritus who did not respond to standard treatment were recruited to participate. After exclusion of systemic or known reversible causes, each patient received up to 10 treatments which were performed approximately one week apart. Erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR) and C-reactive protein (CRP) were measured before and after a series of acupuncture treatments to evaluate levels of inflammation and pre- and post-treatment surveys were conducted to evaluate levels of perceived itch. Results Only one of the ten patients in this study possessed an elevation of ESR before treatment. This patient's ESR value returned to normal range after treatment and this participant reported subjective relief of her pruritus. Conclusions Future studies on the efficacy of acupuncture in the treatment of chronic idiopathic pruritus should focus on those patients with measurable levels of inflammation at the initiation of the study or utilize alternative and more comprehensive values to monitor disease response.

Efficacy and Tolerability of a Combined 445nm and 630nm Over-the-counter Light Therapy Mask with and without Topical Salicylic Acid versus Topical Benzoyl Peroxide for the Treatment of Mild-to-moderate Acne Vulgaris.

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the efficacy and tolerance of a combined 445nm/630nm light therapy mask for the treatment of mild-to-moderate acne vulgaris with and without topical 1% salicylic acid with retinol versus 2.5% benzoyl peroxide. DESIGN: A 12-week evaluator-blinded, randomized study. Subjects were randomized to be treated with the 445nm/630nm light therapy mask alone, benzoyl peroxide, or 445nm/630nm light therapy mask with topical 1% salicylic acid with retinol. PARTICIPANTS: Healthy male and female subjects 12 to 35 years old with Fitzpatrick skin types I to VI and mild-to-moderate facial acne vulgaris. MEASUREMENTS: The primary endpoint was the change in the number of inflammatory acne lesions after 12 weeks of treatment. Secondary endpoints included the change in noninflammatory acne lesions, change in total acne lesions, change in Investigator Global Acne Assessments, and overall responder rate. RESULTS: 445nm/630nm light therapy mask-treated subjects showed a 24.4-percent improvement in inflammatory acne lesions (p<0.01) versus 17.2 percent (p<0.05) and 22.7 percent (p<0.01) in benzoyl peroxide and 445nm/630nm light therapy mask with topical 1% salicylic acid with retinol, respectively, a 19.5-percent improvement in noninflammatory lesions (p<0.001) versus 6.3 and 4.8 percent for benzoyl peroxide and 445nm/630nm light therapy mask with topical 1% salicylic acid with retinol, respectively. Subjects in the 445nm/630nm light therapy mask group also achieved a 19.0-percent improvement in the Investigator Global Acne Assessment (p<0.001) versus 4.7 percent in benzoyl peroxide and 13.9 percent in 445nm/630nm light therapy mask with topical 1% salicylic acid with retinol (p<0.01). Treatments were well-tolerated overall with trends toward less early irritation in the 445nm/630nm light therapy mask group. CONCLUSION: 445nm/630nm light therapy mask appears to be a safe and effective therapy for mild-to-moderate acne.