ABSTRACT
The advertisements for Renova®, the latest youth enhancer—that promises to dwarf in sales and fame Retin-A, its popular predecessor—are bold, no-nonsense, and attention-grabbing. Despite a flock of commercial imitators, Renova's advertising as “the only prescription cream proven to treat fine wrinkles” carries the aura of scientific credibility. 1 No expense has been spared to promote the “specially designed and patented water-in-oil emulsion.” Magazine and journal advertisements for the much discussed product are rarely limited to one page; three-page promotions have become standard. And dermatologists, a critical target of the advertising blitz, have been bombarded with generous five-page buys in Archives of Dermatology, a journal widely read in the profession.
