Efficacy, tolerability, and safety of montelukast versus finasteride for the treatment of moderate acne in women: A prospective, randomized, single-blinded, active-controlled trial.

Background Acne is a chronic inflammatory skin disease which involves the pilosebaceous unit. Tissue inflammation isone of the crucial mechanisms, amongst others. Of the various cytokines, leukotriene B4 (LT-B4) is the most potentleucocyte chemotactic mediator. Montelukast is an antagonist of the LT-B4 receptor. Finasteride is an antiandrogen whichspecifically inhibits the 5α-reductase enzyme. Aims This study aimed at comparing the efficacy, tolerability and safety of montelukast versus finasteride in the treatmentof moderate acne in women. Patients/method This randomized, single-blinded, prospective trial over 12 weeks recruited 65 female subjects with moderate acne vulgaris (Global Acne G…