ACNE (PIMPLES) aka ZITS!

Medical Advice: on Acne

Hello, my name is Maggie Reynolds, I am a full-time medical writer for several medical publications; and I was also covered in acne as a kid. I am writing today about acne, and how your teenagers can avoid the pain and suffering that I went through. I remember being a teen with acne, I never wanted to go outside and see anyone. It was aweful.

So what is acne? Acne is a common skin condition that causes red spots to appear mostly on the face or back; but you can get pimples most anywhere on your body. Most often acne hits sometime between age 12 and 25. However, as I have just found out by personal experience, that men and women in their 40s can also suffer from acne breakouts... just try a wild week in Vegas and see what kind of acne you have.

There are many treatments available to help deal with the condition... thanks to modern research.

I wanted to know what caused acne, where does it originate from and how many ways does acne appear? Well here's the different kinds of acne, and how they appear. There are:

• blackheads (comedones)
• whiteheads
• red or yellow spots
• greasy skin
• scars

Acne typically affects the skin of the face, back, neck, chest and arms and the severity of the condition can vary. I had the worst "back-ne" when I was in Florida, it was a combination of sun tan lotion, and after sun lotion which clogged my pores and made a complete connect the dots page from my neck to my rear-end.

Do white people have more acne than other races? No! Acne affects people of all skin colours. The processes that cause acne are exactly the same in people with black or brown skin but the impact is altered by the skin pigmentation. The red blotches just appear darker on fair skinned people than dark.

And where does acne come from? Well, to begin with, the surface of the skin has lots of tiny "sebaceous glands" just below the surface. These glands make an oily substance called "sebum" that keeps the skin smooth and supple. These tiny pores are like little (holes in the skin) which allow the sebum to come up to the skin surface. Hairs also grow through these tiny sebaceous pores.

Doctor's believe, acne is caused by the overactivity of the sebaceous glands; once aggravated, these glands secrete oily substances onto the skin.

Testosterone in people triggers the sebaceous glands to produce an excess of sebum. At the same time, the dead skin cells lining the openings of the hair follicles (the tubes that hold the hair) are not shed properly and clog up the follicles. These two effects combined cause a build-up of oil in the hair follicles. This causes blackheads and whiteheads to form. The best cure is hot water and soap.

There are a lucky few, who only have this type of acne problems...their acne does not progress beyond this stage. However in the rest of us have more active acne issues; the build-up of oil in the hair follicles creates an ideal environment for a bacterium called "Propionibacterium". These bacteria feeds off the sebum and produce substances that inflames the skin and creates the redness associated with zits.

Then there's the worst of the worst of acne... this is called 'inflammatory acne'; that's where cysts develop beneath the skin's surface. These acne cysts can rupture, spreading the infection into nearby skin tissue. This can result in scarring. One thing you can do to prevent scarring is NOT TO POP YOUR PIMPLES. That can make things worse! Actually there are a number of things that can make your acne worse. These include the following:

• picking and squeezing the spots may cause further inflammation and scarring
• also, stress can make acne worse in some people, although it is not clear why
• female outbreaks may be affected by the hormonal changes that occur during the menstrual cycle
• excessive production of male hormones such as testosterone from conditions such as polycystic ovary syndrome may be another cause
• and some patients report contraceptive pills may make acne worse.

Why might "the pill" cause acne to worsen? This is due to the type of progestogen hormone in some pills. If your birth control is giving you acne tell your doctor, because newer types of contraceptive pills can actually improve acne. Your doctor will advise you which contraceptive pill to take - but remember, some medicines for other ailments can also make acne worse. For example, some medicines taken for epilepsy, and steroid creams and ointments. Do not stop a prescribed medicine if you suspect it is making your acne worse, but tell your doctor about the changes in your skin.

It makes me feel ugly -- Acne may cause you considerable emotional distress but there is a range of treatment options to help you. No treatment will completely 'cure' your acne. The aims of treatment are to prevent new spots forming, to improve those already present, and to prevent scarring.

Acne Treatments - Home

It is really important to keep those spot-prone areas clean, so wash the affected area twice a day with an unperfumed cleanser. Don't over wash your skin. The skin needs a certain amount of oil to maintain its natural condition, so avoid aggressive washing with strong soaps.

What should you use? Man, there are so many options available you may have a problem starting. A number of over-the-counter remedies available from pharmacies were developed to treat mild acne. These usually contain antibacterial agents such as benzoyl peroxide (eg Oxy and Clearasil Max). Be careful using these remedies. Benzoyl peroxide can dry out the skin and encourage it to shed the surface layer of dead skin. Together, these effects make it harder for pores to become blocked and for infection to develop.

Benzoyl peroxide can also cause redness and peeling, especially to start with. This tends to settle down if you reduce the number of times you use it. You can then build up your use gradually.

No home treatments for acne works immediately. So if you are expecting acne to go away overnight, its not going to happen. It can take weeks, if not months, for significant effects to be noticeable. If home treatments have not worked after a few months, or if it gets worse, you should visit your doctor and tell them of your condition.

They may start your treatment by prescribing a preparation containing benzoyl peroxide. If this does not work, or if you have more severe acne, there are a range of other treatment options that you can either rub onto your skin (topical) or take in tablet form (oral). Topical treatments There are several topical treatments you may be prescribed including those listed below:

There is new acne information available to help you cure your stubborn acne; read here about new acne medicines.

 

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