Information and Help With Acne

Available Treatments

Today you can find numerous products that advertise the treatment of acne. However, many of them do not have scientifically proven effects. If you use a combination of treatments, you can reduce the amount and severity of your acne in most cases. One thing that is important to keep in mind is the fact that the stronger the acne treatment the greater the chance of side effects. If there are more side effects involved then you will probably need to do a greater degree of monitoring. The following are some treatments that have proven to be effective.

Exfoliating

You can exfoliate the skin two ways. The first is mechanically using an abrasive cloth or a liquid scrub. The second way is chemically using agents such as salicylic acid and glycolic acid, which encourage the skin to peel the top layer to prevent build up of dead skin cells, which can combine with oil to block the pores and cause acne. Moisturizers and anti-acne topical treatments that contain chemical exfoliating agents are found in abundance as over-the-counter medications.

Topical Bactericidals

There are many over-the-counter products that contain Benzoyl peroxide, which can be used as a bactericidal against mild to moderate acne conditions. Benzoyl peroxide is typically found in gels or creams that can be rubbed on the skin twice daily over the affected region. This will help prevent new lesions by killing the bacteria involved in causing acne. Benzoyl peroxide is a strong oxidizer, or in other words mild bleach, that does not cause resistance. The one drawback to this that should be considered is it will cause dryness, local irritation and redness. Therefore, you may need to accompany this treatment with suitable non-comedogenic moisturizers that will help prevent over drying the skin. You need to also be careful using Benzoyl peroxide products since they will easily bleach any fabric or hair it comes in contact with. There are other antibacterial you can use such as triclosan or chlorhexidine gluconate but they are less effective than Benzoyl peroxide.

Topical Antibiotics

By applying antibiotics such as erythromycin, clindamycin or tetracycline you can help kill the bacteria that grow within the blocked follicles. Topical antibiotics are as effective as oral antibiotics but they don’t carry the possible side effects such as upset stomach or drug interactions. However, they can be difficult to apply over larger areas other than the face.

Oral Antibiotics

There are several oral antibiotics including tetracycline or erythromycin that can be helpful in the treatment of acne. However, using antibiotics to kill the bacteria growth that causes acne will not help reduce oil secretions and abnormal cell behavior that can also cause acne. Some of these antibiotics may not be useful as well as the bacteria can become more resistant to the drugs. Acne will typically reappear at the end of treatment.

Hormonal Treatments

For women acne can be improved through the use of hormonal treatments. Anti-testosterone Cyproterone in combination with oestrogen is most effective in helping reduce androgenic hormone levels that cause acne. However, a combination of both of these is not available in the United States currently. Side effects are minimal with hormone treatments and may include a temporary whitening of the skin around the injection point. However, this method has less risk of scarring than surgical removal.

External Retinoids

These products can be useful in normalizing the lifecycle of the follicle cell. These medicines are usually topical and include medicines such as tretinoin, adapalene and tazarotene. All these medicines are related to Vitamin A and have very mild side effects. However, the main side effect you should be on the lookout for it skin irritation.