Tretinoin and Hydroquinone safety

How many percent of Tretinoin and Hydroquinone is safe for facial skin? Are there any harmful side effects for these chemicals? I am thinking about using them for melasma treatment.

2 answers to “Tretinoin and Hydroquinone safety”

A: Both Hydroquinone and Tretinoin are safe. You can do Hydroquinone 4-8% and Tretinoin 0.1%.

Don Mehrabi, MD

Thank you for your question. There recently had been a lot of buzz regarding the safety of hydroquinone and its potential carcinogenic risk, however, this potential association has not materialized or been proven, and has not stopped physicians from using this bleaching chemical. It is safe, and nearly all... more

A: Tretinoin and Hydroquinone Safety

Bryan K. Chen, MD

Tretinoin cream increases sun sensitivity so if you are going to use it, you need to be consistent about daily applications of a broad spectrum sunscreen.  For someone who has never used hydroquinone before, I would start with 0.025% or 0.05%.  Mix a pea-sized amount of medication... more

Comments

freshblooms
30 posts
20 Jun 2009

i highly do not recommend hydroquinone...every derm here will soon realize after more studies come out that it is unsafe and too harsh a product to recommend..it has not even been being used long enough to realize the harsh side effects and the fact that it will further age your skin...it is banned in several countries including france for fear of cancer risk..and harsh side effects like break down of the skin, severe rashes, and hypo-pigment problems..I cannot even believe a derm would recommend you put something like this on your face!!!... if you are using this too lighten hyper-pigment issues i would strongly recommend another approach...like retinoids..licorice extracts..AHA and BHA's...vitamin C products...and for faster more efficient results an IPL (FYI: only recommended when done by a dermatologist..no medi-spas or nurses.) and never forget the sunscreen! by the way a retinoid can do wonders...for aging and unlike hydroquinone there are plenty of years of evidence to prove this.. i would recommend a fairly new retinoid called atralin it is much less irritating and more moisturizing then the other brands.

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