ACNE 2

Our board certified dermatologists and providers are experts in the field of dermatology and can properly diagnose and treat your acne. Our integrated approach of personalizing the treatment plan to every patient and providing a comprehensive plan to clear your acne is paramount to getting the results you desire. We value each conversation and concern and believe that this is a “team” approach to collectively reach the same goal of having clearer healthier skin. We understand that your skin can affect the quality of your life and we strive to provide the highest level of care.

Blackheads, whiteheads, pustules and painful cysts that appear on the face, back, and chest characterize acne. 

Some people will just leave acne untreated, however, as dermatologists we recommend treating this medical condition. Without treatment, acne can cause dark spots (hyperpigmentation) and permanent scars. Acne has been correlated with low self-esteem and depression. It can affect the quality of your life. There are many effective treatments available for acne. Our board certified dermatologists and providers can work with you to find a comprehensive treatment plan that will control your acne. 

In the skin, we all have oil glands under the skin, known as sebaceous glands, produce an oily substance called sebum. The sebum moves from the bottom to the top of each hair follicle and then spills out onto the surface of the skin, taking with it sloughed-off skin cells.

With acne, the structure through which the sebum flows gets plugged up. This blockage traps sebum and sloughed-off cells below the skin, preventing them from being released onto the skin’s surface. The clogged pores form “whiteheads” and “blackhead”.

We also have bacteria that live on our skin, which also can grow to induce inflammation of the pores that cause cysts and nodules.

A dermatologist is a skin disease specialist who will examine your skin to confirm the diagnosis of acne as other skin disorders can mimic acne.

Our board certified dermatologists and providers at Integrated Dermatology will be able to diagnose your acne and discuss with you which types of treatment can be helpful.

There are many effective acne treatments.  It is categorized by topical treatment (which is applied to the skin), systemic treatments (which works throughout the body), and procedures.

Topical treatments consist of medication that helps reduce the oil, helps kill/reduce the bacteria in the pores, and unplug the blocked-up material in the pores.  Some of the common topical acne medication consists of tretinoin, benzoyl peroxide, and antibiotics.  In addition, incorporating a sound skin care regimen is also essential to the treatment of acne.

Systemic treatments consist of medication that works throughout the body.  This type of oral medication may be helpful for inflammatory types of acne.  Some common oral medications are antibiotics, spironolactone, oral contraceptives, and isotretinoin (Accutane). 

Procedures that can be helpful to treat acne consist of extractions, injections, chemical peels, and laser & light treatments.  Extractions remove the plugged up pore and empty out an acne blackhead.  Injections with medicine can be helpful to treat large acne cysts to ease the pain and reduce the chance of leaving a scar.  Chemical peels are medical grade peels performed in the office to treat acne as well as hyperpigmentation.  Laser and light therapies like Isolaz can reduce the oil and helps reduce the bacteria that cause the acne.  

Our board certified dermatologists and providers at Integrated Dermatology will be able to determine which types of treatment will be helpful to you.

There are many safe and effective treatments available for acne scars.  Treatments can treat hyperpigmentation as well as true acne scars that cause “depression” in the skin.  Treatments include procedures such as microneedling, Fraxel, chemical peels amongst other treatments. In addition, incorporating a sound skin care regimen is also essential to the treatment of acne scars and hyperpigmentation.

It is also imperative to work with a dermatologist to clear your acne.  Since new acne breakouts can lead to new acne scars and hyperpigmentation, it is imperative to treat the current breakouts.

Our board certified dermatologists and providers at Integrated Dermatology perform these treatments in our medical office.