EVALUATION OF THE EFFICACY AND CHARACTERIZATION OF AN
ANTI-ACNE CREAM CONTAINING HERBAL EXTRACTS
MIRELA MOLDOVAN1, CĂTĂLINA BOGDAN1*, IOANA URSU1, MIHAELA ILEANA IONESCU2, MARIA CRIȘAN3
“Iuliu Hațieganu” University of Medicine and Pharmacy Cluj-Napoca
1Faculty of Pharmacy, Department of Dermopharmacy and Cosmetics
2Faculty of Medicine, Department of Microbiology
3Faculty of Medicine, Department of Histology
*corresponding author: catalina.bogdan@umfcluj.ro
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Abstract:
The main objectives of the present study were to formulate and to evaluate an anti-acne cream based on alcoholic extracts of
Thymus vulgaris, Rosa centifolia, Rosmarinus officinalis and Saponaria officinalis and to evaluate the efficacy and the
sensorial characteristics of the emulsion. Firstly, the in vitro antimicrobial activity of the herbal extract was evaluated by
agar-well diffusing method. Staphylococcus aureus ATCC 12602, Escherichia coli ATCC 29998 and Candida albicans
ATCC 10231 were selected as test microorganisms. In the second part of the study, the efficacy of an oil-in-water cream
containing ethanolic extracts and non-comedogenic ingredients was established in a prospective non-randomized study on
twelve volunteers using the cosmetic product twice daily. The activity of sebaceous glands on the mid forehead, cheeks and
chin was assessed by measuring the sebum level with the Sebumeter® device (Courage Khazaka). The subjective
characteristics of the cream base were evaluated by the volunteers, following a 1 to 10 scale and reported by filling an
evaluation questionnaire. The obtained results were statistically significant and revealed the efficacy of the tested cream,
which reduced the seborrhoea after 4 weeks of cream application. The product was well tolerated and appreciated by the
volunteers regarding its spreadability, penetration ability and lack of stickiness.

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