CoChat
Sign Up
Cited by 286Acne and Rosacea Treatments and EffectsEssential Oils and Antimicrobial ActivityDermatology and Skin Diseases

A comparative study of tea‐tree oil versus benzoylperoxide in the treatment of acne

Bassett, Ingrid B, Barnetson, Ross St C, Pannowitz, Debra L·1990·Medical Journal of Australia
DOI 10.5694/j.1326-5377.1990.tb126150.x
Open this paper in CoChat — free account

Abstract

Tea-tree oil (an essential oil of the Australian native tree Melaleuca alternifolia) has long been regarded as a useful topical antiseptic agent in Australia and has been shown to have a variety of antimicrobial activities; however, only anecdotal evidence exists for its efficacy in the treatment of various skin conditions. We have performed a single-blind, randomised clinical trial on 124 patients to evaluate the efficacy and skin tolerance of 5% tea-tree oil gel in the treatment of mild to moderate acne when compared with 5% benzoyl peroxide lotion. The results of this study showed that both 5% tea-tree oil and 5% benzoyl peroxide had a significant effect in ameliorating the patients' acne by reducing the number of inflamed and non-inflamed lesions (open and closed comedones), although the onset of action in the case of tea-tree oil was slower. Encouragingly, fewer side effects were experienced by patients treated with tea-tree oil.

Integrity signals

Registry

Crossref · 10.5694/j.1326-5377.1990.tb126150.x

Cites

7 of 7 references verified0 citation errors · 0 not checkable

Statistics

Recomputing p-values needs the paper’s full text.

Claims the paper makes

This paper’s full text isn’t openly available, so its claims and self-check weren’t run. The registry and citation checks still apply.

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?

  • Bassett et al. study comparing tea tree oil and benzoyl peroxide for acne was classified as case-control level and was limited by small sample size and lack of long-term follow-up.

    “However, the study is limited in terms of its evidence level, as it falls within the category of case‐control studies in the Oxford evidence hierarchy.”

    From Cosmeceuticals in photoaging: A review. (2024) · cites this paper as [15]

Cites

Flagged first, then by citations

Cited by

Sorted by citations

Related

Authors
Bassett, I. B., Barnetson, R. S. C., & Pannowitz, D. L.
Affiliations
  • Royal Prince Alfred Hospital (AU)
  • Department of DermatologyRoyal Prince Alfred HospitalCamperdownNSW2050
  • Lederle Laboratories Clinical Research Unit5 Gibbon RoadBaulkham HillsNSW2153
Venue
Medical Journal of Australia
Publisher
Wiley
Published
1990-10
Volume
153
Issue
8
Pages
455-458
ISSN
  • 0025-729X (ISSN-L)
  • 1326-5377
DOI
10.5694/j.1326-5377.1990.tb126150.x
OpenAlex
W17761781
Cited by
286
References
7
Citations by year
2026: 3 · 2025: 12 · 2024: 10 · 2023: 23 · 2022: 14 · 2021: 6 · 2020: 11 · 2019: 11 · 2018: 9 · 2017: 8 · 2016: 9 · 2015: 6 · 2014: 14 · 2013: 8 · 2012: 9
FWCI
2.88
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
closed
Licence
Locations
  • The Medical Journal of Australia (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
Topics
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Dermatology › Acne and Rosacea Treatments and Effects
  • Life Sciences › Agricultural and Biological Sciences › Food Science › Essential Oils and Antimicrobial Activity
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Dermatology › Dermatology and Skin Diseases
Keywords
tea tree oil, benzoyl peroxide, acne, Melaleuca alternifolia, topical treatment, comedones, skin tolerance, adverse effects, essential oils, antimicrobial activity
MeSH terms
Acne Vulgaris, Adolescent, Adult, Benzoyl Peroxide, Child, Female, Gels, Humans, Male, Oils, Volatile, Plant Oils, Prospective Studies, Skin, Time Factors, Trees, Single-Blind Method

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