Topical tretinoin 0.1% for pregnancy-related abdominal striae: an open-label, multicenter, prospective study

In an open-label, multicenter, prospective study, 20 women applied tretinoin (retinoic acid) cream 0.1% daily for 3 months to pregnancy-related stretch marks in the abdominal area. Efficacy was evaluated by analysis of one preselected target lesion, which was rated on a six-point scale (-1 = worse to 4 = cleared). At week 12, significant global improvement was noted from baseline in all stretch marks, and the target lesion decreased in length by 20% (P = .01). Erythema and scaling, the most common adverse events, occurred in 11 patients, decreased in severity after the first month of treatment, and were controlled with continued application of tretinoin and petroleum jelly ointment. In this small study, topical application of tretinoin significantly improved the clinical appearance of pregnancy-related stretch marks.