Acne Treatment With A Pill; What's New, What Works?
One of the most frustrating and embarrassing skin
conditions faced by nearly every teen, and many adults, is
Acne. This condition is caused by pores in the skin
becoming clogged, and the skin’s natural oils becoming
trapped. The pores usually clog up due to skin cells
shedding too quickly, and then blocking the oils in the
skin from draining properly. Then bacteria trapped in the
skin begins to grow, and whiteheads, blackheads or other
lesions form. There are quite different levels of severity of acne, the
most common being Acne Vulgaris, which is simple pimples,
whiteheads, and blackheads. It is a common form of teen
acne, and is usually easy to treat. A more common variety of adult acne is Acne Rosacea, which
can cause blood vessels to burst under the skin, as well as
whiteheads, but is recognizable by a lack of blackheads.
Treatment for this adult form is quite different than
treatment for teen acne, so a doctor should be consulted. Much more severe is Acne Conglobata, which is rare, but
usually strikes males under 30. Symptoms include large
lesions, and extensive blackheads. It can cause permanent
skin damage including infections and scarring, to say
nothing of the psychological damage. It needs to be treated
by a doctor. However it happens, acne can be embarrassing and awkward,
to say nothing of the potential for scars and permanent
damage. So what to do? There are several commercially available Acne medications
available by prescription. Some of these include
Adapalene, Benzol Peroxide, and Isotretinoin treatments
like Accutane. While Benzol Peroxide is available through
many over the counter treatments like Oxy Clear, generally
Isotretinoin treatments are considered the most effective. Accutane, the most popular of these Acne solutions, is a
pill taken for 15 to 20 weeks. It is generally prescribed
for severe cases of Acne that do not respond to other
treatments. Because of the strong likelihood of severe
deformities in children born to women taking Accutane while
pregnant, many women are asked to take birth control by
their doctors when taking this medication. Other side
effects may include dry cracked lips and skin, and muscle
and joint pain.
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