570 JOURNAL OF COSMETIC SCIENCE biomedical research involving human subjects and was approved by the Institutional Review Board of DERMAPRO, Ltd. (approval No. 1-220777-A-N-02-DICN19062). All procedures involved in the study were explained in detail to the participants and written informed consent was obtained from all subjects prior to the study. TREATMENTS AND EVALUATION SCHEDULE The subjects were treated with an “anti-acne cream” on their face twice daily (morning and evening) for 4 weeks and also asked to not use any cosmetics containing ingredients that could potentially interfere with their acne status during the study period. The moisture content of the cuticle (Corneometer CM825), transepidermal water loss (TEWL) (Tewameter TM300), casual skin surface lipids (Sebumeter SM810), and photographic documentation (VISIA-CR) were evaluated at the baseline, 2 weeks after treatment, and 4 weeks after treatment. Clinical evaluation including acne number, GEA acne score, pore rating, grease level, and moisture level were also required. Self-questionnaires concerning efficacy and usability were filled out by the participants, and skin adverse reaction was assessed at the baseline, 2 weeks after treatment, and 4 weeks after treatment. The entire study was conducted under environmental conditions of relative temperature and humidity, which were identically controlled for each volunteer. Participants were asked to rest for at least 15 min in a temperature (20–24°C) and humidity (40–60% relative humidity) controlled room before instrumental measurements. STATISTICAL ANALYSIS All statistical analyses of data obtained by gross examination and instrumental assessment were performed using Origin Pro 9.0. The obtained data were statistically analyzed by the paired tests. P 0.05 was considered statistically significant at the level of 0.05. The error bar is the standard error. RESULT AND DISCUSSION VISIA-CR ANALYSIS The visual changes of two subjects (NO.19 and NO.28) treated with the “anti-acne cream” for different periods of time are observed in Figure 1. A deep reddish erythema is present prior to use of the cream. However, the application of the anti-acne cream leads to a remarkable decrease of the reddish erythema when treated for 4 weeks. In particular, a significant reduction in the size of the acne and skin lighting is observed after 4-week treatments (p 0.05). PHYSICOCHEMICAL INDICATOR A significant increase in the moisture content for these subjects treated by “anti-acne cream” is shown (Figure 2A), while the TEWL value (Figure 2B) and a value (Figure 2F) have significant decreased compared to the control groups (p 0.05). These results indicate

571 ANTI-ACNE PERFORMANCE OF COSMETIC SKINCARE PRODUCTS that the application of “anti-acne cream” produces an important improvement in skin barrier function and skin color. The proportion of the porphyrin area (Figure 2E) and the content of skin surface lipids (Figure 2D) decreases significantly when the skin is treated for 2 weeks, although the content of the lipids shows a slight increase after 4 weeks. The ratio of pore area (Figure 2C) shows a slight increase, and no statistically significant differences are found compared to control groups (p 0.05). CLINICAL ASSESSMENT Acne number. Many types of acne such as open acne, closed acne, papules, pustules, and nodules are classified. The amount of acne can be used to reflect the seriousness of the acne. As shown in Figure 3, the number of open acne (Figure 3A), closed acne (Figure 3B), papules (Figure 3C), and pustules (Figure 3E) display a general reduction after the use of the product. Among these types of acne, a significant decrease of open acne, closed acne, and papules when treated for 2 and 4 weeks is found compared to the control groups (p 0.05). Also, the numbers of pustules show a significant decrease when treated for 4 weeks compared to those before the use of the product (p 0.05). Acne grade and pore rating. As seen in Table I, the acne grade and pore rating of the subjects have significant decreased when treated for 2 and 4 weeks, compared to control groups (p 0.05). The results show that applying the anti-acne product can improve the acne degree of the subjects. Greasy degrees and moist degrees. As seen in Figure 4, the scores of skin grease (Figure 4A) and moisture (Figure 4B) increase significantly when treated for 2 and 4 weeks, compared to the control groups (p 0.05). The higher the skin grease score, the less greasy the skin. The results indicate that applying the product can improve the skin grease and skin moisture. SELF-ASSESSMENT As seen in Figure 5, the scores of greasiness (Figure 5A), pores (Figure 5B), moisture (Figure 5C), and skin comfort (Figure 5D) from all subjects increased significantly when exposed to Figure 1. Visual changes of skin erythema and postinflammatory hyperpigmentation of subjects treated by anti-acne cream (images obtained by VISIA-CR).