HCQ group was borderline noninferior to that in the doxycycline group (78.57% vs 70.00%, P ¼ .052). During the study, 18 patients reported 31 adverse events, and the proportion of patients with adverse events was low and similar between the HCQ (28.5%) and doxycycline (33.3%) groups. The most common adverse events were dry skin (14.3%), dry eye (7.1%), and dizziness (7.1%) in HCQ group and dry skin (16.7%) and flatulence (10.0%) in doxycycline group. Only 1 patient in the doxycycline group discontinued treatment owing to a severe adverse event (thrombocytopenia). During the follow-up of 12 weeks, there were 4 cases of recurrence in the HCQ group and 3 in the doxycycline group. This study had some limitations, including the small sample size and the fact that some outcomes could not reach conclusive noninferior inference. To conclude, this preliminary study suggested that HCQ can produce improvement of rosacea. Considering the general safety of HCQ during pregnancy, it can be better promoted in female patients with rosacea. Our findings should be replicated in studies with larger populations.
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