Acne Vulgaris Overview

Acne, a condition most notably associated with people in their teens or young adults, is an issue that most people deal with at some point in their life. Creating pimples, blemishes, blackheads, and zits acne can

be more than just an unsightly condition but can cause health problems and can lower someones self esteem leading to depression and/or anxiety about the way people perceive you.

.

Acne Symptoms

There are different levels of acne from mild acne to severe. Commonly acne breakouts appear on the face, forehead, back, shoulders, chest, and neck where the oil glands are the most prominent.

Symptoms of acne can different for every individual and include:

• Comedones (whiteheads and blackheads) Pronounced (kom-uh-DO-neze) are created when the openings of hair follicles become clogged with oil, skin, and bacteria. When the hair follicles are clogged and open they create small black dots on the skin which is why they called blackheads. When the follicles are closed it appears as a white dot which is the reason it’s called a white head.

• Papules Which are small red raised bumps on the skin caused by inflammation from infection of the hair follicles.
• Pustules Caused by infection are red inflamed bumps on the skin with white pus.
• Nodules Large painful solid bumps underneath the skin caused by build up in the hair follicles.
• Cysts Similar looking to boils, these are large painful pus filled blemishes underneath the skin and if not treated properly can cause scaring.

.

What Causes Acne

Connected to sebaceous glands, sebum (an oil that lubricates the hair and skin) travels up the hair follicles out to the skin. Acne symptoms can occur when the sebaceous glands produce an excess amount of the oil and dead skin gets trapped and clogged in the follicle.

Often this is caused in young men and women when the body starts producing certain hormones but can also effect older men and women and can be caused by certain medications, bacterial infections, and heredity.

The oil and dead skin can become clogged under the skin and create a trapped whitehead or may surface creating a whitehead. Pimples, which we’re all familiar with, are created when these trapped substances become infected under the skin creating a painful red blemish on the skin. Cysts occur when inflammation develops deep inside hair follicles and becomes trapped and continues to grow.

Acne Myths

Contrary to popular belief acne is generally not caused by eating certain foods or by having dirt covering the face or other affected parts of the body. If although you have an excessive amount of dirt, makeup, oils, or chemicals trapped in the hair follicles it can lead to an increased chance of different types of acne.

Acne Treatments and Drugs

There are many different treatments and drugs for acne including topical treatment, oral medications, laser treatments, prescriptions, Antibiotics, and even cosmetic surgery in severe cases.

Different Acne Treatments May Include:

• Topical Treatments. These are the most common treatment options for acne generally over the counter lotions which help dry and decrease the amount of oils in the skin, help kill the bacteria, and strip the pours of dead skin cells. These types of treatment lotions usually include contain benzoyl peroxide, sulfur, resorcinol, salicylic acid or lactic acid as their active ingredients and can be quite helpful for mild to moderate acne. They come in a number of different ways to apply including pads, tubes of cream, and liquids. All of which typically work the same.

  If these acne treatment options don’t work for you it may be time to see a doctor or dermatologist for more tips and prescription treatment options.

• Antibiotics For Acne Antibiotics may be used alone or in combination with other medications and lotions to kill the bacteria in the skin that inflames and irritates the pours and follicles. In severe cases you may have to take the antibiotics for long periods of time and it’s very important to stay on the regiment as prescribed by your doctor.
• Oral Contraceptives Some oral contraceptives such as Ortho-Cyclen, Ortho Tri-Cyclen have been shown to help slow down oil production and keep the skin cleaner and less clogged .
• Laser and Light Therapy These light-type acne treatments work by penetrating the skin and damaging the sebaceous glands so they produce less oil and keeping skin dryer and cleaner which in turn lessens the clogging and levels of bacteria.
• Cosmetic Procedures Some doctors and dermatologists may suggest chemical peels and microdermabrasion in combination with other acne medications for medium to severe acne.

Treatment for Acne Scars and Scaring Scaring can be a huge problem with severe and even moderate acne and there are so many procedures available it may be a little overwhelming when deciding which treatment is right for you.

• There are soft tissue fillers which is when you have collagen injected into your skin reducing the look of the scars.
• Dermabrasion for severe acne is when your top layer of skin is removed by a wire brush eliminating the outer scars caused by acne and exposing the new skin underneath.
• Microdermabrasion is a newer, more subtle scaring treatment, that blows crystals into the skin removing the damaged skin which is then vacuumed out along with the crystals.
• Light Source and Radio Frequency Treatments These types of treatments use lasers to essentially burn off the layers of skin in which the blemishes have scarred so that new healthy skin can grow back removing the scars.
• Skin surgery Some doctors will suggest skin surgery where they cut out the cyst, pimple, or blemishes and then graft skin from another part of the body over the affected area creating a smooth surface where the blemish once was.

Your Doctor will know which treatment is specific right for you and your skin. Many times treatment can last months and you may be subject to multiple treatments.

Acne Prevention

Preventing mild to moderate acne is usually as simple as keeping your skin clean so you don’t need a miracle home remedy. Washing your skin with warm water twice a day, showering after workouts, keeping hair and other objects off the skin, and making sure to remove dirt and makeup before bed is very important, as well as utilizing topical treatments and astringents, should be enough to keep you from breaking out by cutting down on oils in the skin and stopping blockage in the follicles.

In some cases over the counter acne treatments may not be enough so you may need prescribed medications from your dermatologist that include stronger astringents and antibiotics. Following their directions will help eliminate oily skin and future outbreaks before they start.