Photodynamic therapy in the management of acne: an update.

Acne, one of the most common dermatological diseases, is characterized by inflammatory and noninflammatory lesions that may progress to scars. Starting from pubertal age groups, it can affect adults in the age group 35-40 or more. The conventional therapies for treatment of acne are facing roadblocks because of the antibiotic resistance developing against Propionibacterium acnes. This has led to trying new therapies, of which photodynamic therapy (PDT) seems to be the one under intensive study. Promising results have been observed with PDT use in acne treatment, but it still has some more way to go to acquire the FDA approval for use in acne treatment. This is a review of the literature of use of PDT in treatment of acne, providing a starting point for dermatologists seeking to treat their patients with acne safely and effectively with this new method.