Effectiveness of Luliconazole vs Ketoconazole Topical Formulation in Reversing Damaged Hair Cuticle

The study evaluated the effectiveness of luliconazole (LZ) and ketoconazole (KZ) in repairing damaged hair cuticles on 12 hair tresses, with 6 participants in each treatment group. After 5 and 10 washes, LZ-treated hair showed no cuticle upliftment and improved to grade 1 cuticle damage, while KZ-treated hair did not show improvement. SEM imaging and sensory analysis indicated that LZ treatment resulted in 2.42x and 2.72x improvements in hair smoothness and softness, respectively, after ten washes, compared to KZ. The study concluded that LZ, a botanical conditioner-based formulation, is more effective than KZ in enhancing hair integrity post-washing. The authors suggest that further human studies are needed to confirm these findings, and they disclosed that they are employees of Lupin Limited, which did not fund the study.