INTRODUCTION
Acne vulgaris is a debilitating disease involving the sebaceous glands and the proliferation of Propionibacterium acnes (P. acnes). This skin condition is highly prevalent in the adolescent population, affecting over 85% of teenagers, and approximately 9.4% of the global population.1,2 Acne vulgaris is clinically characterized by inflammatory papules, pustules, and comedones that can affect the face, chest, and back. The condition can also be associated with cystic nodules and, in more severe disease, scarring. Acne and residual scarring can have adverse effects on quality of life and lead to low self-esteem and feelings of embarrassment.3 Despite progress in therapeutic options, treatment for acne scarring is frequently suboptimal and often overlooked in patients with acne.4 There are multiple treatment options for acne that range from topicals and antibiotics to systemic formulations. However, despite several available treatment modalities, there exists a demanding need for an effective and long-term solution.
Botulinum toxin type A is commonly used in cosmetic dermatology for local muscle paralysis; however, there is an increasing amount of evidence supporting the use of Botulinum toxin type A in the treatment of acne vulgaris. To our knowledge, there are no systematic reviews published in the scientific literature on the treatment of acne and acne scarring by Botulinum toxin type A. Therefore, the purpose of this work was to conduct a systematic review on the efficacy of Botulinum toxin type A treatment on acne vulgaris and residual acne scarring.
Botulinum toxin type A is commonly used in cosmetic dermatology for local muscle paralysis; however, there is an increasing amount of evidence supporting the use of Botulinum toxin type A in the treatment of acne vulgaris. To our knowledge, there are no systematic reviews published in the scientific literature on the treatment of acne and acne scarring by Botulinum toxin type A. Therefore, the purpose of this work was to conduct a systematic review on the efficacy of Botulinum toxin type A treatment on acne vulgaris and residual acne scarring.
MATERIALS AND METHODS
A comprehensive literature search was developed by the authors and was run by an experienced medical librarian on Oct 17, 2023. The search terms were: "botulinum toxin" OR botox OR "Botulinum Neurotoxin" OR daxibotulinumtoxina OR onobotulinumtoxina OR abobotulinumtoxina OR incobotulinumtoxina OR prabotulinumtoxina OR disport OR xeomin OR jeuveau OR daxxify ) AND ( acne OR ( oily AND ( skin OR dermatology))). The following databases were queried: PubMed/MEDLINE, Embase, Scopus, CINAHL, and the Cochrane CENTRAL Register of Controlled Trials. Google Scholar was searched as well. Both controlled vocabularies (eg, MeSH terms) and keywords in the title or abstract fields were searched.
