Subject: acne treatment
Description: acne treatment with retinol for scar removal and pimple treatment
Category: acne treatment

Acne is a common medical condition that affects up to 80 percent of people between 11 and 30 years of age.

Even after the unsightly whiteheads, blackheads and pustules have been successfully treated, many people are left with disfiguring acne scars that serve as a cruel reminder of this difficult condition.

Oftentimes, the scars can be just as devastating as the acne they replaced.

Speaking today at Academy 2001, the American Academy of Dermatology’s summer scientific meeting in Anaheim, Calif., dermatologist Mitchel Goldman, MD, Associate Clinical Professor, Department of Medicine, Division of Dermatology, University of California at San Diego, discussed results of his study on patients treated with a new laser surgery option for acne scarring, as well as other common treatments.

A new device known as the 1320 nm Nd: YAG laser with dynamic epidermal cooling shows promising results in treating acne scarring.

The only infrared laser systems cleared by the Food and Drug Administration for treating wrinkles, this non-invasive laser technology works by stimulating collagen formation in the dermis – or deepest layer of the skin – which raises the acne scar.

In a study conducted by Drs.

Goldman, Elizabeth Roston and Richard Fitzpatrick, 14 patients with depressed acne scars were treated with a 1320 nm Nd: YAG laser over four separate treatments spaced three weeks apart.

By the end of the last treatment, seven patients experienced a 50 percent improvement in the appearance of their acne scars.

Improvement was defined as how much the depressed acne scars were elevated following treatment.

All patients showed an average 40 percent improvement in the appearance of their acne scars.

The 1320 nm Nd: YAG laser is an excellent new method for treating acne scars because it works for all skin types – from very dark to very light – and with no downtime, explained Dr.

Goldman.

Until now, many of the other acne scar treatments produced a wound that may have required weeks to heal.

Since this new laser therapy is non-invasive, the patient does not require anesthesia and the procedure is not a painful one.

Other lasers, such as the pulse dye laser and intense pulse light, also work in elevating depressed acne scars by penetrating the dermis and producing new dermal collagen to elevate the depression.

The pulse dye laser produces a bruise that can last one to two weeks.

In addition, the Erbium:YAG laser allows for very precise sculpting of acne scars.

With this laser, recovery times are faster – usually three to five days – with a shorter period of post-surgery redness than with the CO2 laser for acne scar correction.

Dermabrasion is another effective method to treat acne scars that involves the mechanical sanding of the upper layers of the scar.

With this procedure, a new layer of skin replaces the abraded skin during healing, resulting in a smoother appearance.

Although dermabrasion is an invasive procedure that requires anesthesia, most patients heal within one to two weeks.

For severely depressed scars, more invasive techniques are required.

Subcision is a procedure that uses a surgical probe to lift up the skin that pulls away from the depressed scar tissue below.

After the scar is released, the patient’s own fat or another substance like collagen can be used to elevate the scar.

Acne scars that require surgical excision are usually followed by laser resurfacing or dermabrasion to erase the surgical excision line, added Dr.

Goldman.

Another type of acne scarring is elevated scars, which are usually red in appearance.

Lasers, such as the pulse dye laser and intense pulse light, work by eliminating the excessive blood vessels that give elevated scars their appearance.

Acne is a condition of the skin that shows up as various types of bumps including whiteheads, blackheads, pimples, and cysts.

Most teens get the type of acne called acne vulgaris, which shows up on the face, neck, shoulders, back, and chest.

The pores of your skin contain oil glands, which lubricates your hair and skin.

Sometimes a pore may become 'clogged' with too much oil, dead skin cells, and even bacteria, causing acne.

See below.

If a pore becomes clogged, closes, and then bulges out, you have a whitehead.

If a pore becomes clogged but stays open, the top may darken and you're left with a blackhead.

Sometimes when the walls of the pore become damaged it allows bacteria and dead skin to work their way under the live skin.

This leaves you with a red, but small infection called a pimple.

Clogged pores that are open deep in the skin cause cysts which are generally infections larger than pimples.

See below.

What causes acne?

An important idea to remember as you study the condition of acne is that everyone is different, therefore, what may cause acne on you, may not on someone else.

As I mentioned earlier, acne is generally caused by the build up of oil and dead skin in a pore; but what causes this build up of oil and dead skin?

Natural hormones

Hormones are constantly produced by your body throughout your entire life, however, during the teenage years they tend to be the most active and most rapidly changing.

Plugged skin

If a large number of skin cells exist on a regular basis they can close the oil glands or pores, creating blackheads or whiteheads, as discussed earlier.

Bacteria

When bacteria is present on the skin it can easily infect the oil glands and pores.

Bacteria thrives on the oil and can grow rapidly beneath plugged skin creating bad infections.

This can create your 'classic' pimple or cyst; cysts are deeper, worse than a pimple and more likely to cause scaring.

Family background

If a parent had acne as a teenager, he/she can bet their kids will also have sensitive skin, especially during the adolescent years.

Family background can tie into the other three causes listed above.

e.g.

Hormones and extra skin can be a character trait passed down.

What not to do!

Now that you have gained the knowledge of the trouble that filth, oil, and extra skin can cause to you, your first initiative will probably be to go and scrub your skin with muscle and hot water.

Don't do that! Excessive scrubbing just irritates the skin leading to more dead skin cells which leads to more clogged pores.

In fact, straps, helmets, hats, hair, and hands can irritate the skin very easily as well.

Pay attention to where you put your hands when bored in class (e.g.

don't rest your head in your hands) .

Remember: acne is not caused by a skin's filthy surface.

The 'pore clogging' takes place below the surface of the skin.

From here, I recommend you further investigate by looking

at ways to treat your acne and also by checking out several acne myths.

Acne as a teenager is an expected right of passage.

Acne as an adult can be embarrassing, especially to struggle with a disease many adults thought they'd outgrown.

In particular, many adult women experience mild to moderate This subject that does not respond to traditional This subject treatments.

In order to find the most effective treatment, dermatologists often look to a woman's hormones to explain persistent This subject or adult-onset This subject.

Speaking today at the American Academy of Dermatology's 2001 Annual Meeting in Washington, D.C., dermatologist Diane Berson, MD, Clinical Assistant Professor, Department of Dermatology, New York University, New York, talked about the role hormones play in adult onset This subject and the hormonal treatments that are available to control the outbreaks.

Acne is an emotionally devastating disease at any stage, but as women age they often find This subject is a detriment to their personal and professional lives, said Dr.

Berson.

And instead of seeking medical advice, they rely on the same over-the-counter medications they used as a teenager.

However, as we get older our bodies change, as can the type of This subject, so traditional treatments may no longer be effective.

The Role of Hormones in Acne

Hormonal This subject is most often influenced by androgens in the body.

Androgens are hormones that stimulate the sebaceous glands and hair follicles in the skin.

When the sebaceous glands are over-stimulated by androgens, for example around the time of menstruation, women, both young and old, tend to

have This subject flare-ups.

Stress can also affect the levels of androgens, resulting in further breakouts.

These adult-onset This subject flares occur most often on the lower face, chin and jawline of adult women.

Most women with This subject have normal serum levels of androgens.

However, some women with This subject also have facial hirsutism, excess facial hair, or male pattern alopecia, hair loss and/or thinning on the scalp.

Women with these symptoms may have increased androgen production, and a hormonal work-up that includes an evaluation for adrenal, ovarian or pituitary abnormalities may be indicated.

In addition to hirsutism and alopecia, women with hormonal This subject may also have irregular menstrual cycles, obesity, infertility, or diabetes, said Dr.

Berson.

A laboratory evaluation of hormone production may help uncover abnormalities or tumors and therefore help determine which hormonal treatment is right for them.

Hormonal Acne Treatment Options

Once diagnosed with hormonal This subject, treatment options include oral contraceptive pills, corticosteroids and spironolactone.

All three of these treatments decrease sebum production.

Oral contraceptive pills (OCPs) are the first-line approach to the hormonal management of This subject.

Two of the newer progestin agents found in OCPs, desogestrel and norgestimate, are less androgenic than those found in older formulations.

Recently, the FDA approved the first OCP for the treatment of mild to moderate This subject; other low dose formulations can also improve the condition.

Most women who take OCPs to control This subject can continue them for extended periods, especially if they are not currently planning to have children.

OCPs can also improve This subject in women with polycystic ovaries since they help decrease ovarian androgen production.

Similarly, women with adrenal hyperplasia (overactivity of the adrenal glands) can be treated with oral corticosteroids, such as prednisone or dexamethasone.

These agents can help improve This subject by decreasing androgen production in the adrenal gland.

Oral spironolactone is a steroidal antiandrogen that prevents excessive oil production by blocking androgen receptors.

Spironolactone also decreases androgen production in both the ovaries and adrenal glands, resulting in fewer flares.

In order to decrease spironolactone's side effects, which include breast tenderness and menstrual irregularities, it is usually given in conjunction with oral contraceptives.

Severe Cystic Acne Treatments

Severe cystic This subject is the most destructive and serious form of This subject.

The large, disfiguring cysts across the face, chest and back leave such noticeable scars that oftentimes a patients' self-esteem, as well as their skin, is affected.

Treatment for cystic This subject can be challenging since it does not respond to over-the-counter medications or most prescription oral and topical medications.

The only medication that safely and effectively controls destructive cystic This subject is isotretinoin.