Brimonidine is a highly specific α2 adrenergic receptor (ARα2) agonist with vasoconstrictive activity and has been approved as the treatment of open-angle glaucoma for almost 20 years1 . Brimonidine has also been approved for the topical treatment of persistent (nontransient) facial erythema of rosacea in adults 18 years of age or older2-4. We clinically experienced that topical brimonidine tartrate treatment of patients with acne and rosacea resulted in alleviation of flushing as well as improvement of acne. Since it is well recognized that inflammatory reaction induced by Propionibacterium acnes is critically important in the pathogenesis of acne5 , we speculate that brimonidine has an anti-inflammatory effect in addition to its genuine vasoconstrictive effect.
展开▼
