Mederma Research

A patient I had performed surgery on wrote this after a follow-up call I made with him. He has taken an active interest in my practice in the past by participating in Open House and Seminar events in the mid-west when I have held them there. Here is his email, which speaks well for his methodical nature as well as informing me and my audience of the results of his research. I won’t comment on Mederma because I have no experience with it so the statements that are reflected in the research below, must stand on their own and should be taken with a grain of salt.

Thanks so much for your call yesterday! So, it was a real relief to get your call!

I forgot to ask you what you thought of over-the counter ointments, besides Bacitracin (or the Lamin gel from GraphCyte) that supposedly reduce or minimize the donor scar. Mederma appears to be the largest selling product, although there are huge number of similar products (e.g., Dermarest, Dermatix). I found your responses to similar questions on The Balding Blog:

1. https://baldingblog.com/2005/11/16/mederma/
2. https://baldingblog.com/2005/11/01/dermatix/

WebMD has a truncated “Medline” search, called “Medscape,” that provides medical journal abstracts. This is what I found:

1. Medscape – Mederma
2. Medscape – Mederma

Just in case you can’t access these abstracts, the first study in 2002 concludes: “Histologic analysis demonstrated no significant reduction in scar hypertrophy or scar elevation index. However, a significant improvement in dermal collagen organization was noted on comparing Mederma-treated scars with untreated control scars (p < 0.05). No significant difference in dermal vascularity or inflammation was noted. Computer analysis of the scar photographs demonstrated no significant reduction in scar erythema with Mederma treatment. The active product in Mederma, allium cepa, has as its derivative quercetin, a bioflavonoid noted for its antiproliferative effects on both normal and malignant cells, and its antihistamine release effects. These properties could theoretically prove beneficial in reversing the inflammatory and proliferative responses noted in hypertrophic scars. Despite the authors' inability to demonstrate a reduction in scar hypertrophy, the improvement in collagen organization noted in the Mederma-treated scars suggests it may have an effect on the pathophysiology of hypertrophic scar formation."

The second study in 2006 concludes: “Cutaneous scars resulting from surgical procedures can be erythematous, hypertrophic, pruritic, painful, or cosmetically unacceptable. An onion extract-based topical gel (Mederma, Merz Pharmaceuticals, Greensboro, NC, USA) has been marketed as a product to improve scar appearance and texture. However, few data are available to substantiate these claims. … CONCLUSION: Petrolatum-based topical agents constitute standard therapy in the management of postoperative wounds. In this side-by-side, randomized, double-blinded, split-scar study, the onion extract gel did not improve scar cosmesis or symptomatology when compared with a petrolatum-based ointment.”

Looks like a difference in outcomes, but I don’t have the medical training to interpret them properly. In any case, I was wondered what you thought or whether you have any recommendations on any of these over-the-counter scar reducing ointments.

Feel free to use any of this information, of course, for The Balding Blog.