Acne vulgaris or acne or pimples is a very common condition seen in most adolescents and about thirty percent of adults.
Acne is a condition affecting the pilosebaceous unit or simply put, the oil glands of face, chest, upper arms and back. These oil glands or sebaceous glands remain inactive until puberty in both sexes. At around puberty there is activation of sebaceous glands under the influence of hormones and teens start complaining of oiliness of face and pimples/acne.
Acne or pimples can present as black heads and white heads which are also called comedones. Acne can present as skin coloured or red bumps, or as pus filled lesions or cysts of varying sizes.
Acne does improve with age in about 70% of the population but the sequelae of acne is what scars them, literally and figuratively.
Post acne pigmentation and scarring are the common sequelae. Treatment is aimed at getting rid of acne/ pimples and also at preventing disastrous consequences like stubborn pigmentation and post acne scars.
Home remedies for acne/pimples?
- Home remedies for pimples is a favorite topic for everyone from a neighbor to a friend to a gen Z influencer. Everyone has a take on it.
- Countless people with acne succumb to such false remedies and tips. By the time a person realizes that all these do not work, major damage is done already.
- Reviving from such damage takes a long time even with best of treatments. Do not experiment with remedies which might have bad consequences. Consult a skin specialist or dermatologist to get your acne treated.
- Do not be your own doctor unless you have the right medical degree.
Does acne occur only on face?
- Absolutely not. Chest, upper arms and back also have sebaceous glands and hence acne/ pimples can be seen on these sites as well.
How to treat back acne?
- Acne on back respond slowly to treatments.
- Most important is to understand that acne like conditions also exist.
- Fungal infections like Pityrosporum folliculitis, bacterial infections like gram negative folliculitis also look like acne, but the treatment differs.
- A skin specialist/dermatologist will be able to make a correct diagnosis as to what the condition and treat it accordingly.
- Various topical and oral medication are available to treat acne.
Adult acne?
- Does this condition is exist? Yes, it does.
- Acne improves in most by mid- twenties, in the rest it persists which is referred to as persistent acne.
- Acne might be seen in some for the first time in the adult age group which is called adult- onset acne and most of these patients suffer with hormonal imbalance which triggers acne.
- Evaluating and addressing the aggravating factors is important to effectively treat acne.
Acne in pregnancy, is it common?
- Acne during the first few months of pregnancy is seen.
- Not many treatments are approved for use in pregnancy. Some topical therapies can be used for acne during pregnancy.
- Pimples improve by second half of pregnancy in most patients.
Does dandruff cause pimples?
- Many believe that dandruff, when it falls on face and back, causes pimples. It is not so.
- Dandruff or seborrheic capitis is seen in patients with oily scalp and people with oily scalp also have oily skin on face, and that can predispose to acne.
- A superficial fungus grows on oily scalp giving rise to dandruff and the same fungus can cause bumps on forehead and back which look like acne.
Can we use antibiotics in acne?
- Acne is caused by many factors like increased sebum or oil production, bacterial growth(Propionibacterium acnes) and inflammation.
- Antibiotics help decrease bacterial colonization and help in reducing the severity of acne.
- Tetracycline group of antibiotics, azithromycinare used for treating acne.
There is no“one treatment fits” all in acne. Age of the patient, severity of acne, type of acne lesions, skin type, associated medical and health conditions, hormonal factors, all of these are considered by the dermatologist to effectively treat acne.
Consult our dermatologists at Tatva skin clinic to get rid of your troublesome acne.
Consult your dermatologist at Tatva Skin Clinic for further advises and treatment options.
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