Summary
Background: Postacne scarring is the main concern of many acne patients. Predicting
the liability to scarring can alter the management protocols and help in preventing
such disfigurement.
Methods: Sixty patients with moderate to severe acne vulgaris (according to Global
Acne Grading system) were included, only 35 of them had postacne scars. A quantitative
latex agglutination commercial kit was used to assess serum C-reactive protein
(CRP) concentration by turbidimetry, while serum hepcidin concentration was
assessed by a commercially available double-antibody sandwich enzyme-linked
immunosorbent assay (ELISA) kit.
Results: Patients with postacne scarring had significantly lower serum levels of hepcidin
(P-value < .001) and significantly higher serum levels of CRP (P-value < .05).
Conclusion: Serum levels of hepcidin and CRP are promising markers, which may
be considered as objective tools to predict the possibility of postacne scarring.