Acne is one of the most common skin conditions. It is just like the common cold of skin problems, one that keeps on recurring and whose cure sometimes seems impossible to achieve. However, if you have been an acne sufferer for a long time, then help is at hand in the form of medications and cosmetic procedures that promise better acne treatment.
Procedural therapies are treatments performed by a dermatologist or aesthetician. These therapies are used in the treatment of moderate to severe acne, and are generally used in combination with topical and systemic treatment. Remember that these procedures alone do not promise a complete and permanent solution. However, most procedural treatments give better results and longer problem free duration between outbreaks when compared to other methods of acne treatment.
However, before going for any of these procedures, it is advised that you first undergo non-procedural treatment options, which range in variety from a change in diet and lifestyle, topical creams to taking oral antibiotics and isotretinoin. Since acne has a wide number of types, it is necessary that the exact kind of acne that you have is identified and medicinally treated. In case your acne does not respond to any kind of treatment, or keeps coming back, then some of the cosmetic procedural options that can come to your rescue are discussed here.
Comedon Extractions
Beauticians often perform this during a facial. Comedon extractions involve gently removing plugs of sebum and cellular debris from the pore. Removing milia, blackheads and soft closed comedones reduces the overall number of breakouts. While this is not useful for those with cysts or serious lesions, it is a good option for people with a large number of black and whiteheads.
Chemical Peels
Chemical peels, unlike what their name specifies, do not actually "peel" the skin. Rather, they deeply exfoliate the skin using an alpha-hydroxy, beta-hydroxy, or glycolic acid. Light chemical peels can improve acne by helping to clear pores of debris and removing dead skin cells. While chemical peels can be executed at a beauty parlour, you should go for a dermatologist performed chemical peel if you suffer from serious or moderate to acute acne.
Microdermabrasion
Microdermabrasion refers to a non-painful, non-surgical process that uses a machine for deeply exfoliating the skin through the use of super fine crystal particles. This treatment can be performed at a spa or a dermatologist's clinic. While this is definitely not a treatment for cystic acne, a microdermabrasion’s deep exfoliation of the skin loosens debris and gunk from within the pores, which makes it a very good option for those who have a large number of blackheads and whiteheads.
Corticosteroid Injections
These are used mainly for the treatment of cysts and lesions that may damage skin tissue. The cysts are injected with corticosteroid, and this helps in reducing inflammation and chances of scarring. Corticosteroid injections speed up healing of the lesion to just two to three days as compared to the normal time period of 2 weeks. Steroid injections are typically used as an occasional fix for stubborn acne lesions. They are not used to treat widespread acne because of the potential complications that might occur and the need for frequent dermatologist visits.
Phototherapy
Phototherapy is the term used to describe any treatment that utilizes lasers or light. Phototherapy works by killing the acne causing Propionibacterium acnes (P. acnes) bacteria, reducing inflammation, or shrinking the sebaceous (oil glands), depending upon what therapy is used.
There are many different light and laser treatments available today and your dermatologist can help you decide which treatment, would be most effective for you. Phototherapy can be used for treating all types of acne including severe cystic and nodular acne. These therapies can also improve skin texture and lessen the appearance of scars, so, they may be good treatment choices for people with both active acne and acne scars. Some phototherapy options that are gaining popularity for acne treatment are:
Blue Light: While initial phototherapy technologies utilized for acne therapy were based on UV rays, X-rays, infrared light or ultraviolet light technology, as of now, high-intensity blue light has been proven to be the most effective in destroying acne bacteria. As opposed to infrared or ultraviolet lights, blue light does not have any skin-damaging side effects. Research has proven that blue light therapy is more effective in containing acne as opposed to other systemic and topical treatments. You can undergo this kind of treatment at a spa or a dermatologist’s clinic. Affordable phototherapy machines emitting blue (for killing bacteria) and red light (to stimulate collagen and help healing) are also available for regular use at home. Minor side effects like dryness of skin, redness or skin darkening may occur with phototherapy.
Photodynamic Therapy: Photodynamic therapy is a combination of topical medications and light-based therapies. During treatment, a medication, called a photosensitizing agent, is applied to your skin to enhance the effects of light therapy. This is followed by red, blue, pulsed light or another type of light therapy. Photodynamic therapy is still not a very commonly used option for acne treatment, even though the results have been known to be positive. Some temporary side effects of phototherapy include swelling, redness, crusting and acne flare-ups.
Diode Laser Therapy: Diode lasers are used to destroy oil glands in the dermis, the thick middle layer of skin, without harming the outer skin layers. This kind of treatment can be painful and is generally performed with the use of local analgesics applied to the skin before treatment. Side effects include temporary redness and swelling of the treated skin for some time.
Pulsed Light and Heat Energy (LHE) Therapy: Pulsed light and heat energy is applied to the affected skin in order to shrink the sebaceous glands and destroy P. acnes. A combination of decreased oil production and lesser bacteria leads to notably lesser acne outbreaks. Side effects of this therapy are temporary redness and agitation of the treated skin.
Photopneumatic Therapy: Photopneumatic treatment utilizes a combination of vacuum suction to remove oil and dead skin cells from the sebaceous glands. The targeted area is then treated with blue and red light therapy to destroy P. acnes and reduce inflammation. A new “vacuum” laser, known as Isolaz, has also been introduced as a variation of this therapy.
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Delhi Aesthetic Clinic
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