A Systematic Review on Clinical Evidence for Topical Metformin: Old Medication With New Application

    December 2024 in “ Health Science Reports ”
    Kimia Afshar, Sara Adibfard, Mohammad Hossein Nikbakht, Fereshte Rastegarnasab, Mahsa Pourmahdi‐Boroujeni, Bahareh Abtahi‐Naeini
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    TLDR Topical metformin shows promise for dental and skin treatments, including periodontitis, hair regrowth, wound healing, and acne.
    This systematic review evaluates the clinical evidence for topical metformin, traditionally an oral antihyperglycemic agent, in various medical conditions, including dermatologic and dental applications. The review includes 30 articles with 25 randomized clinical trials and a total sample size of 1,220 participants. Topical metformin has shown potential benefits in hair regrowth, melasma, acne vulgaris, wound healing, and periodontal treatment. Notably, it demonstrated significant improvements in clinical parameters for periodontitis and promising results in hair regrowth for conditions like central centrifugal cicatricial alopecia (CCCA). However, the review highlights the need for further research due to the limited number of clinical human studies, small sample sizes, and short follow-up periods.
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