Licochalcone A in Combination with Salicylic Acid as Fluid Based and Hydroxy-Complex 10% Cream for the Treatment of Mild Acne: A Multicenter Prospective Trial
Open accessAbstract
Purpose: Topical cosmetic agents if correctly prescribed and used may improve outcomes in acne therapy. The aim of this study was to assess the efficacy and tolerability of a new daily cosmetic regimen in the treatment of mild facial acne. Patients and methods: A multicenter, prospective, observational, clinical study was conducted on 91 adult patients with mild acne. Subjects were instructed to apply a fluid containing Licochalcone A/Salicylic acid/L-Carnitine in the morning and a cream with Licochalcone A/Hydroxy-Complex 10% at bedtime for 8 weeks. The efficacy was clinically evaluated by Global Acne Grading System (GAGS) score and by comedones/papules lesions count and by instrumental assessment (Sebutape TM and Reveal Photo Imager/VISIA-CR™ imaging) at baseline, at 4 and 8 weeks. Results: At 4 weeks a statistically significant reduction from baseline of GAGSwas observed. In addition, the mean total count of comedones and papules was significantly reduced by 41% and 45%, respectively, from baseline along with a significant reduction of mean sebum of 47%. At 8 weeks, a further statistically significant reduction from baseline of GAGS, total count of comedones and papules (64% and 71%, respectively), along with an additional sebum reduction of about 52% was also recorded. Conclusion: Our results suggest that the daily regimen based on Licochalcone A with Salicylic acid/L-Carnitine as fluid or with Hydroxy-Complex 10% as cream represent an interesting cosmetic approach for treating mild acne. Keywords: mild acne, topical cosmetic, licochalcone A, salicylic acid, hydroxyl-complex
The claims and statistics of this paper haven’t been checked yet.
Run the check — free, no account needed. It reads the open-access text and checks the sources it cites.
Integrity signals
Registry
Cites
Statistics
Claims the paper makes
The claims and statistics of this paper haven’t been checked yet.
Run the check — free, no account needed. It reads the open-access text and checks the sources it cites.
Claims other papers make about this one
Each is checked against this paper’s own text: does it say what the citing paper says it does?
The remaining three non-randomized studies on global acne severity with no comparators reported 40%-80% improvement in global scoring.
“the remaining three with no comparators reported 40%–80% improvement in global scoring.”
From International expert consensus recommendations for the use of dermocosmetics in acne. (2025) · cites this paper as [23]
Table 1 in the Results (page unavailable) reports an overall GAGS score of 11.6 at baseline and 8.2 at eight weeks—about a 29% improvement, not 40%–80%. The reported 64% and 71% reductions refer to comedone and papule counts, not global acne severity scoring. (LLM, conf=0.88)
Checked by a reasoning model — may be wrong.
Experimental — accuracy not yet measuredTwo non-randomized studies on global acne severity reported significantly superior improvements in global assessment versus comparators or placebo.
“Two of the non‐RCTs reported significantly superior improvements in the global assessment versus comparators or placebo”
From International expert consensus recommendations for the use of dermocosmetics in acne. (2025) · cites this paper as [23]
The Results report a statistically significant improvement in Global Acne Grading System scores from baseline. The Statistical Analyses section specifies comparisons against baseline, not against a comparator or placebo; this paper therefore does not support the claimed superiority over those groups. It is one study, so it also cannot itself establish a finding from two studies. (LLM, conf=0.90)
Experimental — accuracy not yet measured
Self-check
Percentages, sums and reported differences re-computed from the paper’s own numbers.
The self-check needs the paper’s full text.
Cites
Guidelines of care for the management of acne vulgaris
Zaenglein, A. L., Pathy, A. L., Schlosser, B. J., Alikhan, A., Baldwin, H. E., Berson, D. S., Bowe, W. P., Graber, E. M., Harper, J. C., Kang, S., et al. (2016) · Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology · doi:10.1016/j.jaad.2015.12.037 · Cited by 1,597 · see citing works
Schweiger, D., Baufeld, C., Drescher, P., Oltrogge, B., Höpfner, S., Mess, A., Lüttke, J., Rippke, F., Filbry, A. W., & Max, H. (2013) · Skin Pharmacology and Physiology · doi:10.1159/000348473 · Cited by 1,348 · see citing works
Thiboutot, D. M., Gollnick, H. P. M., Bettoli, V., Dréno, B., Kang, S., Leyden, J. J., Shalita, A. R., Lozada, V. T., Berson, D. S., Finlay, A. Y., et al. (2009) · Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology · doi:10.1016/j.jaad.2009.01.019 · Cited by 839 · see citing works
Gollnick, H. P. M., Cunliffe, W. J., Berson, D. S., Dréno, B., Finlay, A. Y., Leyden, J. J., Shalita, A. R., & Thiboutot, D. M. (2003) · Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology · doi:10.1067/mjd.2003.618 · Cited by 818 · see citing works
A comparison of current acne grading systems and proposal of a novel system
Doshi, A., Zaheer, A., & Stiller, M. (1997) · International Journal of Dermatology · doi:10.1046/j.1365-4362.1997.00099.x · Cited by 682 · see citing works
Guidelines of care for acne vulgaris management
Strauss, J. S., Krowchuk, D. P., Leyden, J. J., Lucky, A. W., Shalita, A. R., Siegfried, E. C., Thiboutot, D. M., Voorhees, A. S. V., Beutner, K. A., Sieck, C. K., et al. (2007) · Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology · doi:10.1016/j.jaad.2006.08.048 · Cited by 552 · see citing works
European Evidence‐based (S3) Guidelines for the Treatment of Acne
Nast, A., Dréno, B., Bettoli, V., Degitz, K., ERDMANN, R., Finlay, A. Y., Gancevičienė, R., Hædersdal, M., Layton, A., López-Estebaranz, J. L., et al. (2012) · Journal of the European Academy of Dermatology and Venereology · doi:10.1111/j.1468-3083.2011.04374.x · Cited by 425 · see citing works
Clinical, Cosmetic and Investigational Dermatology
(2020) · Clinical Cosmetic and Investigational Dermatology · doi:10.2147/ccid · Cited by 353 · see citing works
Salicylic acid as a peeling agent: a comprehensive review
Arif, T. (2015) · Clinical Cosmetic and Investigational Dermatology · doi:10.2147/ccid.s84765 · Cited by 281 · see citing works
From new findings in acne pathogenesis to new approaches in treatment
Gollnick, H. P. M. (2015) · Journal of the European Academy of Dermatology and Venereology · doi:10.1111/jdv.13186 · Cited by 174 · see citing works
Glycolic acid peel therapy – a current review
Sharad, J. (2013) · Clinical Cosmetic and Investigational Dermatology · doi:10.2147/ccid.s34029 · Cited by 158 · see citing works
Anti-inflammatory efficacy of Licochalcone A: Correlation of clinical potency and in vitro effects
Kolbe, L., Immeyer, J., Batzer, J., Wensorra, U., Dieck, K. T., Mundt, C., Wolber, R., Stäb, F., Schönrock, U., Ceilley, R. I., et al. (2006) · Archives of Dermatological Research · doi:10.1007/s00403-006-0654-4 · Cited by 151 · see citing works
Applications of hydroxy acids: classification, mechanisms, and photoactivity
Kornhauser, A. (2010) · Clinical Cosmetic and Investigational Dermatology · doi:10.2147/ccid.s9042 · Cited by 143 · see citing works
Picardo, M., Eichenfield, L. F., & Tan, J. K. L. (2017) · Dermatology and Therapy · doi:10.1007/s13555-016-0168-8 · Cited by 90 · see citing works
VISIA system: a possible tool in the cosmetic practice.
Goldsberry, A., Hanke, C. W., & Ke, H. (2014) · PubMed · Cited by 81 · see citing works
Factors Aggravating or Precipitating Acne in Indian Adults: A Hospital-Based Study of 110 Cases
George, R. M., & Sridharan, R. (2018) · Indian Journal of Dermatology · doi:10.4103/ijd.ijd_565_17 · Cited by 75 · see citing works
Kühnl, J., Roggenkamp, D., Gehrke, S. A., Stäb, F., Wenck, H., Kolbe, L., & Neufang, G. (2015) · Experimental Dermatology · doi:10.1111/exd.12588 · Cited by 56 · see citing works
Advances in the Understanding of the Pathogenesis of Inflammatory Acne.
Kircik, L. (2016) · PubMed · Cited by 56 · see citing works
Angelova‐Fischer, I., Rippke, F., Fischer, T. W., Neufang, G., & Zillikens, D. (2013) · Journal of the European Academy of Dermatology and Venereology · doi:10.1111/jdv.12168 · Cited by 45 · see citing works
Becker, M., Wild, T., & Zouboulis, C. C. (2016) · Clinics in Dermatology · doi:10.1016/j.clindermatol.2016.10.006 · Cited by 30 · see citing works
Topically applied l ‐carnitine effectively reduces sebum secretion in human skin
Peirano, R. I., Hamann, T., Düsing, H., Akhiani, M., Koop, U., Schmidt‐Rose, T., & Wenck, H. (2012) · Journal of Cosmetic Dermatology · doi:10.1111/j.1473-2165.2011.00597.x · Cited by 27 · see citing works
Cosmetics for acne: indications and recommendations for an evidence-based approach.
Dall’Oglio, F., Tedeschi, A., Fabbrocini, G., Veraldi, S., Picardo, M., & Micali, G. (2015) · PubMed · Cited by 25 · see citing works
Self-citationMicali, G., Dall’Oglio, F., Tedeschi, A., & Lacarrubba, F. (2018) · Skin Research and Technology · doi:10.1111/srt.12448 · Cited by 16 · see citing works
Self-citationFabbrocini, G., Capasso, C., Donnarumma, M., Cantelli, M., Maître, M. L., Monfrecola, G., & Emanuele, E. (2017) · Journal of Cosmetic Dermatology · doi:10.1111/jocd.12340 · Cited by 11 · see citing works
Self-citationBahalı, A. G., Bahalı, K., Özkaya, D. B., Bi̇lgi̇ç, A., Su, Ö., & Onsun, N. (2015) · Journal of the European Academy of Dermatology and Venereology · doi:10.1111/jdv.13495 · Cited by 6 · see citing works
Flagged first, then by citations
4 of the 29 references couldn’t be matched to a known paper.
Cited by
Sorted by citations
Barrea, L., Donnarumma, M., Cacciapuoti, S., Muscogiuri, G., de Gregorio, L., Blasio, C., Savastano, S., Colao, A., & Fabbrocini, G. (2021) · Journal of Translational Medicine · doi:10.1186/s12967-021-02826-1 · Cited by 38 · see citing works
Self-citationFrom Plants to Wound Dressing and Transdermal Delivery of Bioactive Compounds
Isopencu, G. O., Covaliu-Mierlă, C.-I., & Deleanu, I. M. (2023) · Plants · doi:10.3390/plants12142661 · Cited by 33 · see citing works
International expert consensus recommendations for the use of dermocosmetics in acne.
Thiboutot, D., Layton, A. M., Traore, I., Gontijo, G., Troielli, P., Ju, Q., Kurokawa, I., & Dreno, B. (2025) · Journal of the European Academy of Dermatology and Venereology · doi:10.1111/jdv.20145 · Cited by 32 · see citing works
Styryl Group, a Friend or Foe in Medicinal Chemistry
Bhurta, D., & Bharate, S. B. (2022) · ChemMedChem · doi:10.1002/cmdc.202100706 · Cited by 31 · see citing works
Ramsis, T. M., Selim, H. M. R. M., Elseedy, H. A., & Fayed, E. A. (2024) · RSC Advances · doi:10.1039/d4ra03865g · Cited by 28 · see citing works
Kulthanan, K., Trakanwittayarak, S., Tuchinda, P., Chularojanamontri, L., Limphoka, P., & Varothai, S. (2020) · BioMed Research International · doi:10.1155/2020/2857812 · Cited by 24 · see citing works
Xue, Z., Zhang, Y., Zeng, Y., Hu, S., Bai, H., Wang, J., Jing, H., & Wang, N. (2021) · Phytotherapy Research · doi:10.1002/ptr.7272 · Cited by 15 · see citing works
Hydroxybenzoic acids: Microbial metabolism, pathway engineering and products
Kutraite, I., Augustiniene, E., & Malys, N. (2025) · Biotechnology Advances · doi:10.1016/j.biotechadv.2025.108571 · Cited by 11 · see citing works
Plant Extracts in Acne Management: A Narrative Review
Leti, M., Garidou, L., Cuisiat, S. V., Stennevin, A., Doat, G., & Mias, C. (2025) · Dermatology · doi:10.1159/000547149 · Cited by 8 · see citing works
Therapeutic potential of Licochalcone A in dermatological diseases: from basic to clinical research
Liu, D., Jiang, X., Yang, F., Zhou, J., Li, Y., & Yang, H. (2025) · Frontiers in Pharmacology · doi:10.3389/fphar.2025.1632006 · Cited by 5 · see citing works
How, K. N., Ho, W. C., Sundaran, M., Kammal, W. S. L. W. A., Lim, P. Y., & Chew, W. (2023) · Clinical Cosmetic and Investigational Dermatology · doi:10.2147/ccid.s422898 · Cited by 4 · see citing works
Natural retrochalcones: rare compounds with diverse biological activities
Malaník, M. (2025) · Phytochemistry Reviews · doi:10.1007/s11101-025-10103-y · Cited by 3 · see citing works
Krittanai, S., & Putalun, W. (2022) · Planta Medica · doi:10.1055/s-0042-1759023
L-Carnitine in Dermatology: A Systematic Review of Therapeutic Potential and Biomarker Applications
Chow, E. Y., & Sapijaszko, M. (2026) · Journal of Cutaneous Medicine and Surgery · doi:10.1177/12034754261427402
Shukla, R., Malik, R., Upadhyay, R., & Punyani, S. (2026) · International Journal of Research in Dermatology · doi:10.18203/issn.2455-4529.intjresdermatol20263741
- Authors
- Dall'Oglio, F., Fabbrocini, G., Tedeschi, A., Donnarumma, M., Chiodini, P., & Micali, G.
- Affiliations
- Federico II University Hospital (IT)
- University of Catania (IT)
- University of Campania "Luigi Vanvitelli" (IT)
- Corresponding author
- Micali, Giuseppe
- Venue
- Clinical, Cosmetic and Investigational Dermatology
- Publisher
- Informa UK Limited
- Published
- 2020-01
- Volume
- Volume 12
- Pages
- 961-967
- ISSN
- 1178-7015 (ISSN-L)
- PMC
- PMC6997230
- OpenAlex
- W2998113785
- Cited by
- 15
- References
- 29
- Citations by year
- 2026: 2 · 2025: 4 · 2024: 2 · 2023: 2 · 2022: 2 · 2021: 2 · 2020: 1
- FWCI
- 1.28
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- gold
- doi.org
- Licence
- Locations
- Clinical Cosmetic and Investigational Dermatology (publishedVersion, cc-by-nc)
- Europe PMC (PubMed Central) (publishedVersion, cc-by-nc)
- PubMed Central (publishedVersion, cc-by-nc)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- DOAJ (DOAJ: Directory of Open Access Journals) (submittedVersion, cc-by-sa)
- Archivio Istituzionale della Ricerca - Università degli Studi della Campania "Luigi Vanvitelli" (submittedVersion)
- Topics
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Dermatology › Acne and Rosacea Treatments and Effects
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Dermatology › Dermatology and Skin Diseases
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Dermatology › Dermatologic Treatments and Research
- Keywords
- licochalcone A, salicylic acid, mild acne, L-carnitine, sebum reduction, Global Acne Grading System, facial acne
About these checks
Registry, retraction, Cites and statistics results are computed, not judged, with one exception: a printed reference that no index lists is read once by a model before it counts as a citation error. Claims are extracted by a model and kept only when their quote appears verbatim in the text; each cited source is then checked, with a model’s help, for whether it says what the claim relies on. Those verdicts can be wrong — read the claim’s quote and the cited source before relying on one.
Statistics and arithmetic are recomputed, not judged.
Confidence bands are shown only for fields calibrated on our annotated test set. None is calibrated yet, so no band is shown.
What counts as a claim ›How we measure confidence ›How we check this ›
Are you an author, or do you see a problem with this page? Request a review
