EFFECTIVNESS OF GLUTATHIONE (GSH) 2%, TOCOPHERYL ACETATE 1%, AND MAGNESIUM ASCORBYL PHOSPHATE 3% COMBINATION CREAM COMPARED WITH HYDROQUINONE 4% CREAM AS A SKIN LIGHTENING AGENT: A RANDOMISED STUDY

Black spots and brown spots interfere with aesthetic appearance. For this reason, there are various skin lightening products on the market, such as glutathione, vitamin C, and E. The combination of glutathione, vitamin C, and E, which is a natural antioxidant, is expected to have an equivalent effect with hydroquinone (standard therapy), but with minimal side effects. The aim of this study was to determine the score of skin brightness using Chroma Meter on the subjects before the topical glutathione (GSH) 2%, 1% tocopheryl acetate 1%, and 3% magnesium ascorbyl phosphate 3% combination therapy compared with hydroquinone 4% cream after 6 weeks of administration. A double-blind, pre- and post-treatment randomized controlled clinical trial was conducted on 34 patients at the Dermatology and Venereology clinic of Hasanuddin University Hospital in Makassar, by applying combination cream and hydroquinone on the patient's right arm twice daily. Measurement of skin brightness and erythema using Chroma Meter performed weekly. The results of the study using Wilcoxon Signed Rank and Mann-Whitney test found that the L* (brightness) score in combination cream group was significantly higher than in the hydroquinone cream group (p <0.001). As for the a* (erythema), the score of a* (erythema) in the hydroquinone cream group was significantly higher than in the combination cream group (p <0.001). Measurement of ITA0 score (Individual Typological Angle) after 6 weeks was obtained, and showed that the score in combination cream group was significantly higher than in hydroquinone cream group (p