Preparation and comparative clinical evaluation of liposomal gel of benzoyl peroxide for acne

A novel topical benzoyl peroxide (BP) gel formulation containing liposomal BP was shown to significantly reduce local irritation relative to its nonli posomal BP gel (plain BP gel) preparation and also to improve clinical effi cacy (almost twofold) in the treatment of acne. BP liposomes were prepared, optimized, and formulated into a carbopol 934 gel base. Drug release evalu ated using dialysis membrane has repeatedly shown that a new topical gel fo rmulation containing liposomal BP (liposomal BP gel) significantly reduced BP penetration. Clinical evaluation data were also compared with those obta ined with liposomal tretinoin (TRE) gel in an earlier investigation of ours . The overall improvement in terms of percentage reduction in total number of skin lesions demonstrated almost similar results for both BP and TRE. Ho wever, variation was observed in the treatment of separate types of lesions in which liposomal TRE gel was found to be more effective in treating come dones and liposomal BP gel in treating papules and pustules. Also, the lipo somal gel formulation of both the drugs significantly reduced the local adv erse effects, thereby improving patient compliance.