Oral Contraceptives Underutilized for Acne Treatment

Oral contraceptives were prescribed very infrequently to female patients with acne, despite their proven effectiveness in treating the condition, results of a national survey showed. 

Oral contraceptives represented only 3.3% of prescriptions written during initial acne-related patient visits and 1.5% of all visits over a 15-year period. The percentage of prescriptions written by dermatologists was even lower, researchers reported.

With data from the National Ambulatory Medical Care Survey, researchers reviewed 6.8 million adolescent girls and women (ages 12 to 55 years) and a total of 37 million clinical visits related to acne between 1993 and 2008.  Visits to dermatologists accounted for 86.6%, followed by 5.99% to internists, 4.21% to general and family physicians, and 1.22% to physicians in obstetrics and gynecology. 

Overall, 3.28% of the women received prescriptions for oral contraceptives, and dermatologists prescribed oral contraceptives to only 2.63% of their patients. Rates of prescription by dermatologists increase .09% each year.   No significant increase to these rates has been observed in any other specialty.  

-Michael Potts