Different Treatment Procedures for Acne

People love their skin and for many people, their skin is their best friend. However, you might not be aware of the fact that even your skin likes you. Your skin protects you from harmful elements and helps in keeping you together. There are even people who do their best in protecting their skin. Then, one day, all of sudden, acne flares-up with its unsightly head and people suddenly start hating their skin. So, what do you need to do then? Will it be a good idea to turn to expensive scrubs and harsh chemicals? You cannot help because your hormones are the ones causing the extra oil to clog up the skin pores or you might have bacteria running rampant. The only way out for you is to look out for the best acne treatment that can not only help you in getting rid of acne but will also help you in treating the acne scars. There are different types of acne treatments available throughout the market. There are topical medicines, oral medicines and different therapies that can help you in getting rid of acne. However, if these do not work for you, you can have your dermatologist or doctor prescribing you  stronger medicines and therapies .

Acne Medications

Acne medicines generally work by reducing the production of oil, fighting bacterial infection or reducing inflammation and speeding up skin cell turnover. This helps in preventing scarring. You might not be able to see positive results for four to eight weeks with most prescription medicines for acne and you might also find your skin getting worse prior to getting better. Your acne might take up several months and even years to get cleared up completely. Medicines suggested by doctors are completely dependent on the severity and type of acne that an individual might be suffering from. It might be a topical medicine that you have to apply on your skin or it might be an oral medicine. Sometimes acne medicines are also used in combination. It is to be noted that pregnant women cannot use prescription medicines for treating acne. It is also worth noting that you must always consult a doctor regarding the benefits and the risks of acne medicines and other therapies that you are considering.

Topical Medicines

Topical medicines work absolutely perfect when they are applied on dry and clean skin about 15 minutes post washing it. You might not be able to see the advantage of topical medicines for several weeks and you might even experience skin irritation, peeling, redness and dryness. Your doctor might suggest different steps for minimizing the side effects which will include the use of low dose, switching to some other medicine or washing it off after some time. Some of the most common topical medicines used for treating acne include:

Retinoids

Retinoids are available in the form of lotions, gels and creams. These are derived from vitamin A and they include adapalene, tretinoin and tazarotene. These medicines should be applied in the evening, three times during the week initially and then regularly as the skin gets used to them. These medicines work by preventing the plugging of hair follicles.

Dapsone

This is basically a gel that is quite effective when used in combination with topical retinoids. However, it comes with certain side effects like skin dryness and redness.

Antibiotics

Antibiotics generally work by fighting off and killing skin bacteria while reducing redness at the same time. An antibiotic and a retinoid can be used together initially when treating acne. However, you need to apply the antibiotic in the morning and the retinoid in the evening. Antibiotics for acne are also used in combination with benzoyl peroxide for reducing the chances of developing antibiotic resistance. Good examples of effective antibiotics for treating acne include clindamycin and erythromycin.

Oral Medicines

Oral antibiotics might be needed by people for fighting inflammation and reducing bacteria. The best oral antibiotics for treating acne include tetracyclines like doxycycline and minocycline. Doctors might recommend stopping the use of these medicines as soon as the signs of improvement are seen or as soon as doctors find out that the drugs are not working. This generally happens within three to four months.

 Combined Oral Contraceptives

These are quite effective in acne treatment especially among adolescent girls and women. However, these comes with certain side effects like breast tenderness, weight gain, nausea, breakthrough bleeding and headache.

Anti-Androgen Agent

These are for girls and women for whom the oral antibiotics are of no help. The anti-androgen agent works by blocking the effects of the androgen hormones on the sebaceous glands. The side effects include painful periods and breast tenderness.

Therapies for Acne Treatment

There are different therapies suggested for select cases of acne either in combination with medicines or alone. The therapies include:

 Light Therapy

Different varieties of light-based therapies can be tried for gaining success in acne treatment. However, there are further studies required for determining the right method, the dose and the light source. Light therapy generally targets acne causing bacteria resulting in skin inflammation. There is blue light therapy which is considered one of the most effective therapies for treating acne. It can easily be carried out at home by making use of a hand-held tool. There are certain side effects of light therapy that you must remain aware of and these include temporary redness, sensitivity to sunlight and pain.

Chemical Peel

Chemical peel is a procedure that makes use of repeated applications of a certain chemical solution like salicylic acid. This procedure is considered one of the most effective acne treatments provided it is used in combination with other treatments for acne except oral retinoids. This is because chemical peels in combination with oral retinoids might cause skin irritation.

Steroid Injection

Cystic and nodular lesions can easily be treated by injecting steroid medicines directly into them. It is a procedure that helps in improving the appearance of the cystic and nodular lesions without the requirement of any sort of extraction. Skin thinning, appearance of small blood vessels and lighter skin are the side effects of this treatment procedure.

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