Mediderm

Mediderm is a line of emollient skin and scalp care products for people with very dry skin caused by psoriasis, eczema and atopic dermatitis. The range is owned by Farmina sp. z o.o., a pharmaceutical manufacturer based in Kraków, Poland [6], and its products are sold as medical devices rather than as ordinary cosmetics. The core range has four items: a cream, a shampoo, a shower emulsion and a bath emulsion, all sold through pharmacies.

Little is known about the brand's own beginnings, but its parent company has a long history, tracing its roots to 1908. In Germany the line is presented by Farmina's subsidiary Spreewälder Arzneimittel GmbH, which explains why the brand's websites name two different companies. Mediderm is an active brand.

No founding date or founder is documented for Mediderm itself, and its websites tell no origin story. What is documented is the company behind it. Farmina began as Polska Spółka Akcyjna Pharma, founded in 1908 by the pharmacist Bolesław Jawornicki [6]. Over the following century it came to specialise in prescription and over-the-counter medicines and dietary supplements, covering digestive, circulatory, gynaecological, throat and skin complaints. In 2004 the company moved into new headquarters in the Rybitwy district of Kraków.

The 1908 date belongs to the parent company. It is not Mediderm's launch year, which remains unknown.

Mediderm belongs to Farmina, whose portfolio also includes brands such as Gargarin and Propolis, according to the Polish pharmacy chain Gemini. The brand's English-language website lists Farmina, at ul. Lipska 44 in Kraków, as its contact address and as the administrator of visitors' personal data [2]. The Polish review portal KWC by Wizaż likewise names Farmina as the producer [5].

The German-language website tells a different story at first glance. It names Spreewälder Arzneimittel GmbH, based in Märkische Heide, Germany, as the company responsible for the site and for handling personal data [1]. The two are not rival owners. Farmina bought the German pharmaceutical company in 2014, a purchase that, according to Gemini, widened its product range and let it bring Polish products to the German market [6]. Farmina calls Spreewälder Arzneimittel its subsidiary and counts it among the group's four production plants, the only one outside Poland [7]. The German company therefore acts as Mediderm's operator in Germany, while the brand itself originates with its Polish owner.

Farmina has received several Polish business distinctions, including Gazele Biznesu titles in 2013, 2015 and 2016 and the Laur Aptekarski pharmacy award in 2015, and it holds GMP (Good Manufacturing Practice) certification. These belong to the company as a whole rather than to Mediderm specifically.

Mediderm does not present itself as a cure. The German website describes the series as an accompanying therapy for pathologically dry skin in people with psoriasis, eczema and neurodermatitis, the German term for atopic dermatitis. The English site puts it more simply under the heading "comfort for your skin", while the German homepage's main line translates roughly as "improves the comfort of life".

The company's argument rests on everyday use. People with these conditions often need to apply moisturising care over large areas of the body and keep doing so over long periods, so a product has to be pleasant enough to keep using. Mediderm's answer is mostly about what it leaves out. The company says its formulas contain no SLS (sodium lauryl sulfate, a common foaming agent), parabens, fragrances or dyes, and the German site adds that they contain no steroids [1]. Product pages repeat that the range is free of cortisone.

Texture is the other half of the pitch. According to the company, the light formulas absorb quickly and do not stain clothing or bedding. Mediderm also says every product in the series is suitable for adults of all ages and for babies from their first month of life.

Distribution is kept within the pharmacy channel. The German site states that the products are available only in pharmacies [1], and the English site carries the line "Pharmacy recommended". The brand's website has appeared in German, English, Czech, French and Hungarian versions.

Each of the four core products is labelled as a medical device. The company states that all of them have undergone clinical evaluation with positive results for safety and effectiveness [1], and that the preparations were dermatologically tested in patients with psoriasis and atopic dermatitis [4]. No independent published studies of the range are documented.

The cream is the centre of the line and comes in three sizes: 100 g, 500 g and 1 kg. Mediderm describes it as a special preparation for diseased skin that keeps the skin moisturised for long periods, forms a protective barrier, softens rough and cracked patches and calms itching and burning. Its ingredient list is short: purified water, white petrolatum, cetearyl alcohol, liquid paraffin, cetomacrogol 1000 and phenoxyethanol. The company says the cream is rated as clinically very well tolerated, which in its view makes regular, long-term use possible.

The shampoo, sold in a 200 g size, is meant for daily use on a dry, flaking scalp. Its one notable active ingredient is white ichthyol, a light sulfonated shale oil that the company credits with easing itching and helping to loosen scales [3]. Mediderm notes that the shampoo's typical ichthyol smell does not stay in the hair after rinsing. The formula also includes glycerin, oat amino acids and dexpanthenol.

The shower emulsion (250 g) is a non-foaming wash. According to the brand, it cleans irritated and sensitive skin without disturbing its natural acid balance, and it is intended to prepare the skin for the cream. Its base includes isopropyl myristate, liquid paraffin, glycerin and liquid lanolin.

The bath emulsion (500 ml) is an oil emulsion added to bath water. The company says it restores the skin's natural fat layer, reduces flaking and moisture loss, and helps relieve redness, itching and burning. It is described as dermatologically and microbiologically tested.

The range listed on KWC by Wizaż is wider than the four products on the brand's website. The portal shows nine Mediderm products, including a Mediderm Baby sub-line with a nappy-rash cream, a baby bath oil and a baby care cream, as well as a bath concentrate and a roll-on deodorant [5]. The cream is the most reviewed item there, with 197 user reviews.

Mediderm is active. Its German product pages were online in April and June 2026, the most recent visible activity being the indications page in June 2026 [4], and its products continue to be listed with user reviews on KWC by Wizaż. The brand website could not be reached in early October 2026; whether that was a temporary outage is not known.