Acne Information Overview
85% of people aged between 12 and 24 are likely to have had some form of acne.
Others may experience intermittent and serious forms well into middle age.
However, this skin disease is neither blood related nor contagious.
Acne is a universal skin disease which can affect all genders, ages and races.
This skin disorder is the result of over active oil glands in the skin (sebaceous glands)
and blocked hair roots (pilosebaceous units).
Acne develops in the blocked pilosebaceous canals deep beneath the skin.
If these canals are obstructed by hardened sebum and dead cells,
the body will have difficulty ejecting dirt and body wastes;
thus providing a breeding ground for Propionibacterium acnes
or the P. acnes in the follicle walls or hair pores.
These acne-infecting bacteria will attract white blood cells.
The area then gets inflamed due to the reaction of the body to these activities, eventually leading to the growth of acne.
This skin disorder comes in many forms. It is basically categorized into three:
• Whiteheads and blackheads or closed and open clogs respectively.
• Mild inflammatory acne which includes papules and pustules.
• Cystic acnes or nodules.
Acne sufferers may experience many different manifestations, each with their own characteristics.
Some types may be interelated and some have their independent origins.
• Comedo or microcomedo, the smallest type of lesion)
• Pustules are pus-filled, usually yellowish in colour.
• Nodules - are the same with pustules only varying in size and the degree of swelling.
• Papules - are typically inflamed pimples.
• Cysts - are pus filled and have sac like formation. This is the most severe form of acne.
There are other forms of acne as follows:
• Acne vulgaris - the most common form which comprise of blackheads and whiteheads.
Normally found around the shoulder, the surface of the face and the forehead.
• Infantile acne - which occurs in infants or new born babies.
• Acne rosacea - acne growing on the skin surface of adults, especially middle aged women.
• Scalp folliculitis - or acne that manifest on the scalp and around the hairline.
• Perioral dermatitis - which is more prevalent in women, characterized by small pustules and papules.
• Acne conglobata - or acne vulgaris in its sever form.
• Acne fulminans - usually characterized with systematic symptoms.
Acne is a disease that cannot be fully cured.
However, there are medications and products that decrease the skin’s vulnerability to acne infection.
These may be be treated by the following methods:
• Homeopathic treatment, these can be prepared and used at home and are usually available over the counter
(soap and water, salicylic acid, benzoyl peroxide and alcohol).
• External treatment that are applied on the external layers of the skin.
• Oral drug treatment or medications that can be taken systematically,
these are usually composed of antibiotics (like spironolactone, minocycline and doxycycline).
There are no tangible causes of acne for most forms of the affliction.
Nevertheless, several studies were made to determine some of the causes which may trigger the production of acne.
These include the following:
• Propionibacterium acnes or P. acnes (the acne infecting bacteria)
• Psychological stress (also, emotional stress)
• Unhealthy diet (basically, too much fat in the diet)
• Improperly functioning digestive system
• Hormonal imbalances and changes
( which may be the product of the digestive system reacting to some food items)
• Cosmetics (especially those that are oil based)
Gale Encyclopedia of Alternative Medicine: Acne
Published: January 01, 2001 Digital
List Price: $5.99
Amazon Price: $5.99 Prices subject to change.
The acne and the exstasy
Published: 1971 Unknown Binding
List Price: $5.99
Acne scarring: current treatment options.(Procedures in Therapeutics)(Drug overview)(Disease/Disorder overview) : An article from: Dermatology Nursing
Published: April 01, 2006 Digital
List Price: $5.95
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Understanding Acne (A Handbook for Primary Care Physicians)
Published: 2002 Paperback
List Price: $84.95
No smoking, no acne inversa? Wrong. (Recurrences Common).: An article from: Skin & Allergy News
Published: February 01, 2003 Digital
List Price: $5.95
Amazon Price: $5.95 Prices subject to change.
Hormone Therapy of Acne: Clinical and Experimental Principles
Published: 1980-01 Hardcover
List Price: $25.00
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