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Acne is an inflammatory disease (redness, swelling, and tenderness)
of the sebaceous glands (one of the three types of sweat glands
which are most numerous on the face, chest and back).
Causes
- Heredity
- Hormones - elevated with puberty, menses and stress
- Cosmetics - Noxzema, cocoa butter, mineral oil, Vaseline
- Exercise
- Foods - milk and dairy products, caffeine, citrus, and foods
containing iodine - but a very UNCOMMON cause of acne
- Bacteria - not a primary cause of acne
Therapy
- Oral antibiotics for their anti-inflammatory properties, to
prevent the formation of new cysts, not curative but work only
as long as you take them
- Oral or injected cortisone or prednisone for its rapid, effective,
short-term (1-4 weeks), anti-inflammatory properties - to get
rid of redness and swollen cysts
- Topical drying agents such as benzoyl peroxides and vitamin
A acid (Retin-A) to keep the skin dry, get rid of blackheads,
help cysts heal faster
- Topical antibiotics
- Incision and drainage of cysts
- Cortisone injected into cysts
- Cryo-spray of cysts with liquid nitrogen to decrease their inflammation
and speed healing
- Accutane - an oral medication reserved for the most severe and
long-lasting cases of acne
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