Treating Adult Acne

Posted Wednesday, September 12, 2007 to PROCEDURES > Face

Posted by The Original Anti-Aging & Cosmetic Surgery Magazine

Acne isn't pleasant at any stage in life but adult acne is not something you are going to quickly grow out of. Valerie Burnett reports on an effective treatment available through your plastic surgeon's office.

Embarrassing and often painful, acne can strike after adolescence and stubbornly not budge. Adult acne can have a huge effect on self esteem and confidence. Walking into a business meeting with red pustules allover your face doesn't encourage a confident stride and firm handshake.

Many acne sufferers are reluctant to try something new after years of expensive experimenting with little or sometimes no impact being made on the stubborn spots. However, when a system has real results and can be combined with other cosmetic enhancements in your doctor's office, spread the word I say.

A system aptly named The Terminators by BioMedic is available through doctors' offices and is used under supervised professional care.

Arizona plastic surgeon Jack Friedland MD explained: "Patients with adult acne should have a consultation with an esthetician. Going to an esthetician in a medical office is a little bit different. When patients come to a doctor's office they're coming to get environmentally damaged skin treated."

When using an acne regime from a surgeon it often comprises regular in-office visits and is supplemented by an at-home range of products.

Michigan plastic surgeon Steven Ringler MD incorporates adult acne treatments in his office: "Ideally patients come in once a month which isn't always practical for a lot of people. Sometimes they come in 2-3 times until their skin clears and then go on a maintenance program at home. If they have a flair-up they come in again."

Surgeons have found treating patients for acne a useful adjunct to their other cosmetic surgery procedures. "We've always treated acne scarring and we used to have to tell patients to come back when their acne has cleared. There is no sense in treating scarring if you have active acne, you're going to get more scars and your risk of infection goes up," said Dr Ringler." Now when those patients come in we can get their acne cleared and then they're more suitable for treatment for their scarring."

Acne is caused by hyper-activity of the sebaceous glands. Most treatments are focused on trying to open up the pores and let the sebaceous material out and also decrease the bacterial flow.

Katy Lau an esthetician in Dr Friedland's office said: "I deal with a lot of adult acne and I think it's usually caused by excessive stress and also hormonal changes. There are other causes...even laundry detergents can aggravate it."

Each case is treated individually. The skin and lifestyle of the patient assessed and a regime recommended.

One in-office treatment is called MicroPeel Plus. It frees the skin of dead cells and stimulates the skin renewal process. "This has 20-30% salicylic acid and is great for someone with active acne, or acne prone skin. We cleanse the skin, apply the salicylic acid and it crystallizes for 2 minutes. It's applied allover the face and neck, even the eye area," explained Lau. This procedure takes about 15 minutes with little down time.

The MicroDelivery Peel is a microdermabrasion process. A superficial layer of dead skin is exfoliated by a high speed stream of Vitamin C enhanced crystals across the skin. "With this treatment the patient needs to come in every week, so it is effective but it depends on how dedicated they are," said Lau.

These two stronger treatments go hand in hand with a daily skin care regime. Lau explained: "I feel about 60% of improvement in the patients' skin comes from their home care. It's up to them to take care of their skin in between the times they come to see us."

While Lau believes proper cleansing is important for acne prone or active acne patients, sunblock is vital. "Most patients don't understand the importance of sunblock, but if they pick at the pustules and go out in the sun they're going to have little purple bruises for months," she explained.

Once the acne is cleared, often acne scarring remains. There are several treatments for acne scars, and while none prOduce 100% results, the skin can be smoothed and the acne scars reduced.

Treating Acne Scars

To treat scarring the skin needs to be resurfaced. Dr Friedland explained the options: "You can resurface by either applying a caustic chemical such as a chemical peel, or by using a mechanical abrasion like dermabrasion, or you can use a laser."

The depth required and the amount of time the patient has, helps determine which treatment is chosen. Microdermabrasion treatments need to be done in a successive series to get past the superficial layer of skin. Dermabrasion, chemical peels and laser can all go instantly deeper, however all require down time.

A difference between chemical peels and dermabrasion or laser is the effect it has on the texture of the skin. "Chemical peels tend to treat all the surface irregularities the same, whereas mechanical removal treats the higher spots more than the lower spots so you should be able to get some leveling out of the skin," explained Dr Ringler. Now treating acne and subsequently the acne scarring can be done in the same office with an individual approach to your needs and skin type.

The Terminators

AntiBac Acne Wash - a gentle, deep cleaning, exfoliating facial wash for the treatment of acne. It contains 1.8% salicylic acid, combined with lactic acid, for maximum exfoliation to help clear blemishes, pimples and blackheads. It helps clear acne and penetrates pores to help prevent new blemishes from forming.

AntiBac Spot Treatment - specially designed to release 2.5% benzoyl peroxide gradually into the skin to provide continuous effect treatment for resistant acne.

AntiBac Acne Mask - a facial mask that absorbs excess oils and delivers a topical 10% dosage of benzoyl peroxide. This mask can be used 1-2 times a week depending on the amount of oil and acne present. Botanical ingredients help promote a smoother softer skin.

AntiBac Acne Lotion - designed to provide continuous gradual release of 2% salicylic acid and other ingredients to treat broad areas of acne. Its non-drying formula helps reduce blemishes while softening the skin.

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