Everyone at some point in their lives, not just during those awkward, hormonal teenage years, has suffered with acne. For those lucky few, it comes and goes during our adolescence, but for some poor souls, it can drag on and even leave scarring which many live with for the rest of their lives.
However, all is not lost, there are people that can help with such issues, who can treat many forms of acne or acne related conditions as the picture above helps to demonstrate. Some of these conditions are active where the condition is ongoing or recurring, and some conditions are more permanent, where a different type of treatment is required.
Here are just a few examples of acne conditions and the treatments professionals like us use all the time to help boost people's confidence by giving them back smoother and healthier looking skin.
Mild Acne-GRADE 1
Typically, this is where someone suffers with localised blackheads and whiteheads, so they're not widespread. How do you know if you got white or black heads and the differences between the two? Blackheads open comedones. Comedones are the skin-colored bumps that form when you have a pimple. In the case of blackheads, these comedones consist of follicles beneath your skin with very large openings, or pores.
When you have blackheads, these large pores become clogged with a substance known as sebum. A chemical reaction with the sebum occurs under your skin. Melanin is oxidized and turns the clogged pores a black color. This form of acne is often found on your face, neck, shoulders and back.
Whiteheads are known as closed comedones. The follicles beneath your skin become filled with bacteria and have a very small opening at the top of your skin. Air isn’t able to enter the follicle, so the bacteria inside don’t undergo the same chemical reaction that causes blackheads to be dark.
Like blackheads, whiteheads are typically found on your back, shoulders, and face. Treatment is very simple, make sure you get a good cleaning habit cleansing morning and night with a products that has an acid base like salicylic or azelaic acid. Book yourself in to see a professional aesthetician that will help remove black/white carefully.
Moderate Acne-GRADE 2
Moderate acne is a skin condition that is much more widespread. It includes many whiteheads and blackheads, as well as papules and pustules. What are the differences between papules and pustules? Acne papules are very common and can appear on the skin at any age and at any time particularly if you there is an increase of hormone production. Androgens are hormones that can cause acne by stimulating the production of sebum in the skin. Androgen levels are often higher in women with acne than in women without acne. Papules are inflamed red bumps on the skin. They develop when excess oil, bacteria, and dead skin cells push deeper into the skin and cause inflammation (redness and swelling).Pustules commonly occur on the following body areas:
shoulders
chest
face
neck
underarms
back
pubic area
hairline
Like papules, pustules are easy to identify. They are also caused by hormonal imbalances in the body. An increased production in sebum in the skin clogs pores with oil and dead skin cells and cause a blockage.This blockage causes the pore to bulge, resulting in a pustule.
Pustules are red and inflamed and have a whitish/yellowish centre usually contain pus due to an infection of the pore cavity. Like papules, pustules can also be found on the list above.
Moderate acne is usually treated with a combination of topical treatments or antibiotics, or both.Topical treatments like Benzoyl peroxide: An antiseptic that reduces bacteria,
Retinoids:Products that contain retinoic acids or tretinoin, which come as creams, gels, and lotions.
The most commonly used topical antibiotics for acne treatment are erythromycin, which is a macrolide antibiotic, and clindamycin, which is a lincosamide derivative. These are available as solutions or lotion.
In both cases of mild and moderate acne cleansing should be done morning and night with an acid based product, non comedogenic moisturising cream and spf. A visit to your aesthetician is advisable as they can recommend good professional homecare products and treatments.
Moderate to Severe Acne -GRADE 3
Grade 3 acne is a combination of grade 1 and 2 with an added extra!! Nodules.
Nodules are best describe as hard, inflamed lumps located deep within the skin. Like papules, nodules have no visible head. Nodules are a severe form of acne blemish and can cause skin complications such as dark spots or scarring.
This type of acne lesion develops when clogged pores become infected, and swell beneath the skin’s surface. As a result, nodular acne may be more severe than its physical presentation suggests. Unlike papules that take weeks to heal, nodules stay present for months as the bactria lays deep within the pores. Cleaning with OTC products will not be enough to help clear up this stage acne. Treatment will consist of visiting your GP or dermatologist. Treatment typically involves prescription medications like oral antibiotics (such as doxycycline or lymecycline), topical retinoids (like adapalene or tretinoin), and sometimes a combination of topical medications like benzoyl peroxide with either clindamycin or adapalene, depending on the severity and individual response.
At JK Skin Aesthetics we find that most of our patients at a Grade 3 acne stage would have seen a GP/Dermatologist and have been prescribed medication. In most cases the patients do not like what the medication side effects are and stop medication completely. This is because the prescribe product, especially topical products can cause burning, sensitivity, redness, extreme dryness and purging -more breakouts. Prescriptive products are made up of very powerful active ingredients like Tretinoin and Adapalene which are a synthetic form of vitamin A that is far more potent than the OTC retinol. If you introduce these powerful ingredients on the skin too quickly you are going to get powerful side effects. We work with the patients and GPs prescriptions, recommending to introduce slowly, building tolerance levels weekly.
Severe Acne -GRADE
Grade 4 severe acne is widespread too, but generally involves suffering from painful papules, pustules, nodules and our new foe the cysts! Cystic acne is the most severe form of acne and produces cysts and nodules alongside inflammatory papules and pustules. This grade of acne can also cause visible scarring.
All forms of acne can affect self-esteem and mood, but the risk of psychological distress is higher for cystic acne as it typically has a greater impact on the appearance of the face and affects young adults who may be more socially sensitive.
All forms of acne, severe cases the most, may not cause physical illness, however, the skin’s appearance can cause emotional and mental distress, low self esteem, anxiety, withdrawal and isolation. In cases of cystic acne, the distress may be greater, as the cysts may be painful.
The the risk of scarring from long-term cystic acne is far greater than any other grade acne and can produce long-term, permanent damage like:
Small, deep pits, known as “ice-pick scars”
Larger pits
Shallow depressions in the skin
Red, raised scars
Treatment can only be through a healthcare professional or Dermatologist that can prescribe topical or oral medication like Accutane (isotretinoin) a prescription medication used to treat severe acne. This medication comes with a warning and has a long list of side effects that has to be monitored carefully under a medical professional. The results can be fantastic but may take time to achieve so patients is the key to effectiveness.
Treatment for scarring from acne is far and wide depending on the severity of the scarring. Mild to moderate scarring treatment like microneedling, mesotherapy,
dermabrasion or superficial peels with a gentle homecare product like a retinol can improve the texture and appearance. For moderate to severe scarring consider laser resurfacing, radiofrequency microneedling, chemical peels, polynucleotide, bio-revitelisers to name but a few that is on offer to help reduce scarring. Do your research! Make sure that whoever carries out treatment is a trained professional.
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