Evidence recordApplied to skin
Ectoin
Answer
Short clinical studies of ectoin-containing creams reported improved eczema severity scores; the vehicle-controlled trial used ectoin together with hyaluronic acid.
Check the formulaEvidence grade
Moderate
Useful human evidence supports the claim, with a meaningful limit in scale, duration, formulation or consistency.
Where it stops
Studies were small and short. One used an active comparator rather than a plain vehicle, one tested ectoin with hyaluronic acid, and the systematic review had an industry-employed author. They do not prove every ectoin product works the same way.
Sources
Sources · 3
Source 1
Skin Pharmacol Physiol, 2014- Design
- Randomized intra-individual double-blind multicentre trial
- Participants
- 65
- Duration
- 28 days
- Measured outcome
- local eczema severity, investigator assessment, itch
- Studied formulation
- ectoin-containing cream EHK02-01, nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory reference cream
Finding
Randomized intra-individual double-blind multicentre trial in 65 adults with mild-to-moderate atopic dermatitis: after 28 days, the ectoin-containing cream performed equivalently to an active nonsteroidal reference cream. There was no plain-vehicle arm.
Source 2
Pediatr Dermatol, 2023- Design
- Randomized observer-blind vehicle-controlled trial
- Participants
- 70
- Duration
- 4 weeks
- Reported numbers
- 23.5%, 5.7%
- Measured outcome
- objective SCORAD, investigator assessment, itch, cutaneous adverse events
- Studied formulation
- 1% ectoine with 0.1% hyaluronic acid cream, vehicle cream
Finding
Randomized observer-blind vehicle-controlled four-week trial in children aged 2–18: 70 were randomized and 57 analysed; the combination cream improved objective SCORAD versus vehicle (P < .001), but ectoin was not tested alone. Mild cutaneous adverse events occurred in 23.5% versus 5.7%.
Source 3
Dermatol Ther (Heidelb), 2022- Design
- Systematic review of six clinical studies
- Measured outcome
- skin dryness, itch, dermatitis severity
- Studied formulation
- 5.5–7% ectoin-containing topical formulations
Finding
Systematic review of six clinical studies (five in atopic dermatitis, one in retinoid dermatitis): outcomes generally favoured ectoin-containing formulations, but many studies were open-label, adjunctive or low-certainty and one author was employed by Bitop AG.