| Acne
Treatment |
 |
| Before |
 |
| After |
|
Junk food causes acne. Chocolate always worsens acne.
You get acne when you do not wash your face enough. Acne ends when you're
19 and never affects adults 20 years old and over. Acne never begins for
the first time in anyone older that a teenager. False, false, false, false
and false.
While these common beliefs concerning acne are all untrue,
most people believe them and often waste valuable time before they seek
treatment for their skin. According to one recent article 65% of patients
delay obtaining necessary treatment for their skin for over one year.
When people delay taking care of their skin, they can
often end up with skin that is more difficult to treat. If you do not
treat acne at its early stages, some patients may scar. Scarring is often
more common in people who pick at their skin. Another result of delayed
treatment is dark spots, especially in people of color. Even with proper
care these spots can take many months to become like your normal skin.
Effective treatment for acne commonly takes time, even many months, so
you must be patient.
| Acne
Treatment |
 |
| Before |
 |
| After |
|
Your hormones, your family history and your stress levels
are the main causes for your acne. Diet seems to play a minor role, though
if you repeatedly notice breakouts after a certain food you should eat
less of that food. Some foods that may play a role in acne include dairy products, milk, chocolate, nuts, seafood, greasy foods and French fries. Our physician, who treats many professional athletes,
also notes that keeping an area covered by clothing such as a hockey helmet
or football chin strap, or taking certain steroids, or heat and sweat can aggravate acne.
While decades ago acne was generally limited to teenagers,
for unknown reasons, currently acne often begins for the first time
in patients in their 20's or even their 30's, and especially in women. "But
I never had this as a teenager", is a common lament that
we hear.
Fortunately, many treatments can help control acne and
often even keep it away or possibly cure it for months to years. If your
acne is mild, often all you may need are over-the-counter treatments such
as 5% benzoyl peroxide. For more stubborn pimples, topical creams such
as vitamin A preparations and topical antibiotics, prescribed by a dermatologist,
can generally help.
| Accutane Treatment |
 |
| Before |
 |
| After |
| When your acne is bumpy, leaves scars or dark spots,
affects you emotionally, or physically hurts, that's when you need additional
help from a board-certified dermatologist. With deeper bumps, otherwise
known as cysts or nodules, the acne is causing inflammation deep within
the skin. With these patients, topical creams cannot penetrate deep enough
into the skin and thereby are often not effective by themselves. You will
frequently need prescription medicines taken by mouth. Often these medicines
need to be given for weeks or months at a time, but if the acne persists
the oral medications may need to be used longer. Antibiotics are most
commonly used, but sometimes patients require hormonal treatments such
as the birth control pill or injections with a minuscule amount of cortisone.
Dark spots commonly affect people of color and can take
months or longer to go away. Treatments include bleaching creams, sunscreens,
vitamin A preparations and exfoliating peels. Of course, your underlying
acne must be controlled or else new spots will form. We recently treated
a woman whose acne and dark spots were so active she refused to go out
socially. With treatment her skin has improved to where she no longer
feels self-conscious. She now feels comfortable dating.
| Accutane Treatment |
 |
| Before |
 |
| After |
|
Acne can affect people emotionally, since you only have
one chance to make a first impression. If you apply for a job, and a potential
employer cannot see past your face, then you may not be offered the job.
The unemployment rate of people with acne, according to one study, was
higher than in people who had clear skin. Other patients feel dirty and
unclean and repeatedly wash their face, which can actually worsen their
skin.
We recall one patient who had spent tens of thousands
of dollars on over the counter medications and make-up before she came
to see him. At the end of the course of treatment, when her skin was clear
and she no longer had to wear make-up, she thanked us for "saving
her life." Although acne is not a life threatening condition, many
patients are very upset emotionally and this can affect their social life
as well. Consequently, people can feel much better about themselves and
have an improved outlook toward the world when their skin is clear.
| Accutane Treatment |
 |
| Before |
 |
| After |
|
Another mainstay of treatment for those with deeper
acne is a derivative of vitamin A, known as isotretinoin or Accutane.
While many people have heard negative reactions concerning the drug, we
feel it can be amazingly helpful for those who need the medication.
We recalled another patient who did not want to leave
his house for months, as he simply felt too embarrassed. Once his skin
was clear he felt more comfortable attending school. Accutane can cause
birth defects so women need to be on contraceptives or abstain during
their course of treatment and for a month after they finish their course
of medication. Accutane has other side effects such as temporary dry lips,
but these side effects are for the most part, controllable with medications
and moisturizers.
We believe that for the right patient, Accutane can
be a miracle. It can often clear even the worst acne for months to years
at a time. Patients who need Accutane but delayed taking this necessary
medication often wish they had taken the course of Accutane sooner. Interestingly,
people often do not realize their skin is clear for many months as their
negative self-image takes a while to improve. Before beginning a patient on Accutane, a consultation and enrollment in the government mandated iPLEDGE program is mandatory.
So there is little reason to suffer from your
pimples, zits, and breakouts. A visit to our office to see our board certified
dermatologist could often help even the most stubborn conditions. Don't
delay!
Our dermatologist has been quoted about acne in major daily New York City newspapers such as the Daily News and the New York Post
Just call our office today at (212)
557-2600 or e-mail us anytime and set up a Consultation for your acne.
| Accutane Treatment |
 |
| Before |
 |
| After |
| |
| Accutane Treatment |
 |
| Before |
 |
| After |
| |
|
Photo Gallery