Background: Mild to moderately photodamaged skin is characterized by dyspigmentation, fine wrinkles, and tactile roughness. An optimal approach to the topical treatment of photoaging would simultaneously address all appearance issues.
Objective: This study was undertaken to evaluate the effect of 4% hydroquinone and 0.3% retinol in photoaging.
Materials and methods: A 16-week study was designed to evaluate the efficacy and tolerance of a single cream containing prescription topical 4% hydroquinone for dyspigmentation and the cosmeceutical 0.3% retinol for fine wrinkles in an emollient vehicle for tactile roughness. This novel formulation was compared with 0.05% tretinoin emollient cream, the standard against which all other topical photoaging treatments are compared. Investigator assessments, subject assessments, and photography represented the evaluation end points.
Results: The cosmeceutical emollient 4% hydroquinone/0.3% retinol cream more effectively diminished the collective signs of photodamage than 0.05% tretinoin emollient cream in terms of dyspigmentation, fine wrinkles, and tactile roughness in 16 weeks.
Conclusion: Combination therapy of hydroquinone and retinol may improve photoaging-associated hyperpigmentation.