Whether a reminder of stressful teenage days, or the remnant of adult blemishes, acne scars are not fun. And, cystic acne scars can be among the worst, with hollowed depressions that can make your face look like a lunar landscape.
Acne forms when oil (sebum) producing glands on your skin get blocked and infected with bacteria. That’s when you see the white pus of an active pimple. Here are 4 ways to treat active acne in Boston:
- Soothing the skin (with the right moisturizers, or tea tree oil), unclogging blocked glands (perhaps with salicylic acid), and eliminating the bacteria (such as with oral or topical antibiotics).
- Sometimes you’ll be prescribed stronger medications such as tretinoin (Retin-A) or isotretinoin (accutane). Oral contraceptives or androgen blockers (such as spironolactone) may also help.
- Other times, we recommend IPL (intense pulsed light) in Boston to treat your active acne. The special wavelengths of light get into the skin and kill the bacteria causing the acne. Just a few quick IPL treatments can greatly improve your skin.
- And, if you have a large cyst, we may inject these with a steroid medication to reduce the inflammation and allow the cyst to calm down and resolve.
