Acne is such a common disease that most dermatologists look at it as a universalcondition that affects most people at some point in their lives.
Some peoplehave mild cases, others have worse - it's just a matter of degree.
Which acnemedication you choose will depend on the severity.
Although some people believe stress, food, cosmetics or too little sleep causeacne, acne is actually caused by excessive oil production inside hair follicles.
A pimple or blackhead occurs when oil cannot pass through the follicle.
When people reach puberty, hormones cause glands within hair follicles to producemore oil.
As a result, acne starts to appear when people reach their teens.
People with minor acne cases can likely use over-the-counter medications whichcontain benzoyl peroxide, a compound which helps kill bacteria on the skin.
Acne medications with benzoyl peroxide come in soaps, creams and gels, so peoplecan choose the correct medication for their skin type.
Gels are good for peoplewith oily skin, while creams are better for people whose skin tends to dry out.
Over-the-counter acne remedies work well for many people, but their effectsare limited.
If a person's acne is not improving with non-prescription treatments,there is a range of prescription antibiotic creams and pills that can normalizeoil production inside hair follicles.
Some people suffer from severe acne whichantibiotics cannot cure.
Cystic acne, which affects 350,000 people, is the resultof a huge oil build-up inside the hair follicle that breaks the follicle walland causes a cyst to form under the skin.
Until recently, there was no treatment for cystic acne.
Cystic acne can bepsychologically devastating.
Patients can become depressed because of theiracne.
But a new drug which successfully treats cystic acne was introduced recently.
The drug, accutane, shrinks oil glands and can clear acne in a lot of cysticacne patients.
Accutane is taken in pill-form for a four-month period.
Most patients continueto see improvement from this new form of acnetreatment even after they have stopped taking the drug, Because accutane is so drying, patients may also feel dry lips and mouth..
And, since the drug caused birth defects in laboratory animals, pregnant andnursing women should not take accutane.
Though there may be side effects of this acnemedication, doctors and dermatologists feel the benefits outweigh the risksfor many cystic acne patients.