Table of Contents
THORNHILL, Ontario — Galderma has rolled out Tactuo, its prescription topical acne gel, to pharmacies in Canada.
Galderma Canada Inc. said Monday that Tactuo, marketed under the name Epiduo in most countries, is the No. 1 prescribed topical acne medication in the United States.
Applied once a day before bedtime, Tactuo is a treatment for people with mild to moderate acne and is the first prescription topical acne gel to combine adapalene (0.1%) with benzoyl peroxide (2.5%), according to Galderma. When used together, the two ingredients unplug blocked oil glands and eliminate acne-causing bacteria, providing fast and visible results as early as the first week of use, the company said.
Acne affects more than 5 million Canadians, 80% of whom are between the ages of 12 and 24, Galderma reported. Though acne is most commonly seen as a stage of puberty, it can also begin in adulthood, with 75% of adult acne occurring in women, the company noted.
"If left untreated acne can worsen, leaving unwanted scars on an individual’s skin," François Fournier, president of North America for Galderma Laboratories, said in a statement. "Our goal at Galderma is to make Canadians aware that individualized treatment approaches to the management of acne are available."
A Tactuo clinical trial published in 2007 in the Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology demonstrated that Tactuo reduced the median number of total acne lesions by more than 50% at the end of the 12-week study, which was much better than monotherapy with adapalene (35.4% median reduction in total lesion count) or benzoyl peroxide (35.6% median reduction in total lesion count) alone, Galderma said.
"The need for an effective once-a-day acne treatment was clear given the prevalence of acne among Canadians and the absence of a similar combination therapy," stated Wendy Adams, general manager of Galderma Canada. "We believe that as in the U.S. and other countries, Tactuo will become the product of choice for acne patients. This is a unique, effective combination, which provides quick, visible results that are sustained over time."
