Treatment for Acne

Oral Acne Treatment

Oral acne treatments include prescription of antibiotics like Erythromycin, Tetracycline, Minocycline, Doxycycline, Azithromycin, and Trimothoprim. Another oral medications are Isotretinoin that has the same molecular structure as that of Vitamin A, and also include consuming Accutane that provides long-term results for an acne free skin.

Erythromycin: a broad spectrum antibiotic to reduce infection and inflammation, available in capsule, tablet, long-acting capsule, long-acting tablet forms. It is commonly prescribed to be taken two to three times a day for a week or more days (but it depends on the severity of the infection.), taken along with or after food. It can be used along pregnancy. The possible side effects are diarrhea, upset stomach, vomiting etc. If such side effects occur, you need to consult with your doctor.

Tetracycline: commonly available as a capsule, the dosage depends on the severity of the infection. It should be taken on empty stomach and should not be taken with any milk products. Pregnant women can not take Tetracycline. It can cause side effects such as- sore mouth, skin redness, diarrhea, upset stomach etc.

Minocycline: belongs to the medications known as tetracycline antibiotics, available as capsules or  tablets, and the dosage depends on the severity of the infection. It cannot be taken during pregnancy, should be taken on empty stomach and should not be taken with any milk products. It can cause side effects like sore mouth, skin redness, diarrhea, ringing in ears etc.

Doxycycline: also belongs to tetracycline antibiotics, available as capsules or tablets, and the dosage depends on the severity of the infection. If you feel nausea with Doxyclince, take it with food or milk. The possible side effects are dry mouth, diarrhea and sunburns.

Clindamycin: commonly used in topical form. If your doctor has prescribed Clindamycin oral, discuss the side effects in detail.

Other typical oral treatments are Retin-A, Cyproterone Acetate, Clindamycin, Adapalene and Sodium Sulfacetamide. They can reduce the sudden bursts of acne and acne scars in both children and adults. You should take these capsules as directed with foods containing fats (like 2% or whole milk), because the fat helps acne germs to be fully absorbed. However, pregnant women need to use two reliable forms of contraception while taking this treatment. The daily dose for normal people is at 0.5 – 1 mg per kg of your body weight.

These oral acne treatments control the secretion of oil and so unclogging the pores underneath the skin surface. To treat severe acne cases, the oral acne treatments are combined with topical agents for better results. The oral contraceptives often decrease the level of androgens, thereby decreasing oil secretion and reducing acne. Because oral acne treatment stops the body to produce as much oil, the side effects are dry skin, lips and the inner parts of your mouth and nose. But to compensate the consumption of high-dose medicines, you should also have proper balanced diet contains fresh fruits and green leafy vegetables.

Other possible side effects include increasing sensitivity to sunlight, abnormal menstrual cycles, depression, inflamed bowels or gums, and severe birth defects. As for the other five acne medicines that were listed above, you will have the side effects such as gastrointestinal upset, diarrhea, yeast infections, allergic reactions, and long-time use will cause your body to become immune from acne medicines.

Note: Their main purpose is just to kill bacteria since they are an antibiotic acne medication. If you don’t want to take your medicine orally, you can use topical acne treatments.

Kinds of Acne Laser Treatments

Watch Laser Acne Treatment Video Here

Laser acne treatment uses laser resurfacing, a proven technology that has been known for treating wrinkles, stretch marks, and other common scars.

How Does It Work?

The surgeon use a very powerful and small laser to effectively trigger the acne. Lasers are painless and completely non-invasive to the skin, making it impossible for bleeding and skin infection to occur. This is because lasers rely solely on heat energy and their wavelengths to allow penetration of the skin and to reach down towards the tissue layers.

With precise targeting by the surgeon and the pinpoint accuracy of the laser, the heat energy can vaporize selected scarred tissues. Once the glands stop producing oils, the bacteria that cause acne will not have an optimal place to grow. This in turn effectively stops acne.

Laser acne treatment has fast procedure. Compared to other treatments that may take months to see viewable results, laser therapies may only take 30-60 minutes per session for an approximate total of 3 sessions to see proficient results.

There are two kinds of lasers used in laser acne treatment available at the surgeon’s disposal – the commonly used Erbium or YAG laser and the recently developed carbon dioxide or CO2 laser. Both of these laser devices are highly accurate and produce no damage to healthy cells and upcoming fresh cells.

The Erbium or YAG laser utilizes heat energy to penetrate the skin and allow the moisture content within to absorb. Without affecting the healthy skin, the heat energy starts to scatter, effectively resurfacing the skin.

The carbon dioxide or CO2 laser performs its laser treatment for acne a little bit differently by emitting very short bursts of highly concentrated laser light which vaporizes the skin in tissue layers. The fresh skin is spared, allowing some new growth to replace the bad layers previously vaporized by the CO2 laser.

Patients can only opt for an acne blemish laser treatment operation if they meet certain medical parameters. With this qualifications, there is the assurance of minimal risk of future scarring. It is very unlikely for any complications to happen as a result of laser resurfacing.

Diode laser has been used to treat acne but the results are not yet conclusive. Diode laser destroys the sebaceous glands and treats acne by stopping any production of sebum. It is sebum that is blocked by the dead skin and fills a pimple. By removing/destroying the sebaceous gland, laser removes the root cause of acne. Diode laser may cause pain but that can be reduced using local anesthetic. Side effects are temporary and very mild (redness, swelling, etc).

The whole concept of acne laser skin treatment revolves around the rebuilding of fresh skin cells and tissues replace the affected areas. This recovery process usually takes around four to six weeks depending on what kind of operation was performed and degree of skin affection. Laser acne treatment is definitely the leading recommended procedure.