Acne is a disorder of sebaceous glands or oil glands present in the skin. Your skin has tiny holes called pores that that can become blocked by oil, bacteria, and dirt. When this occurs, you may develop a pimple or acne.
Cause Of Acne
Acne mainly results from the blocking of the hair follicle. The before mentioned oil or sebaceous glands are located in the hair follicle. With excessive production of skin oil or sebum, the follicle gets blocked.
A lot of debris along with the germs build up in the blocked follicle. It becomes a comedo then. The comedones are of two types i.e. a black head and a white head.
Comedones, if break and if the sebum inside comes in direct contact with the air, its top portion turns black giving rise to the blackhead. Comedo with white top is known as a white head.
If the blocked follicle breaks, the inside material causes an inflammatory reaction with swelling and red bumps. If the inflammatory reaction occurs deep within the skin, the firm cyst or nodule which is tender and painful develops.
Treatment Options
For Comedones or Mild Acne
- Local application of Retinoids
- Benzoyl peroxide or azelaic acid for topical application.
For Inflammatory Acne
- The topical application of Retinoid, Benzoyl peroxide or azelaic acid, as per the physician’s prescription.
- Antibiotics are advised in some cases. The commonly used antibiotics are: erythromycin, tetracycline, clindamycin, Oxytetracycline or Doxycycline. These are to be administered either topically or orally.
For Severe Acne
- Oral dose of antibiotics, to get rid of infection from the body. The different examples are: Doxycycline, Minocycline etc.
- Oral Isotretinoin is often started for severe acne.
Hormonal Treatment – For underlying disorders like Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome, Hyperandrogenism, Adrenal Hyperplasia etc., thorough evaluation and hormonal treatment is needed.
Acne often leave behind residual scars which often cause considerable disfigurement of face. There are various types of treatments available for the residual scars. These depend upon various factors like the depth and size of the scar, previous treatment taken and their results and so on.
Treatment options are as listed below and all of these are available at our clinics:
- Microdermabrasion: Skin polishing
- Skin peels –TCA, Jessner, Glycolic, Salicylic, Retinoid, green peel, Arginine peel, Blue peel, Combination peel etc.
- Microneedling: Dermaroller
- Fractional CO2 Laser to treat Scars
- Subscription with or without skin grafting
- Dermabrasion, depending upon the skin type