Acne Does Not Equal Zits
There are quite a few different kinds of acne, depending on how or why the acne started. Some of the kinds of acne are: acne conglobata (chronic boils); acne fulminans (an extreme form of conglobata); acne cosmetica (caused by cosmetics); acne keloidalis nuchae (from shaving); acne medicamentosa (caused by starting or stopping a medication); acne rosacea (redness on the face); baby acne; hormonal acne; cloracne and the common variety, acne vulgaris (also known as ‘puberty spots’). In this article, we will concentrate on acne vulgaris.
Acne vulgaris can be defined as: ‘an inflammatory disease of the skin, caused by changes in the pilosebaceous units (skin structures consisting of a hair follicle and its associated sebaceous gland). Acne lesions are commonly referred to as pimples, spots or zits’ (from Wikipedia).
Acne is most often found in white Western teens, although it does occur in every country in the world, so there may be a genetic predisposition to it. It is possible that it may be an abnormal reaction to fairly average levels of testosterone. For most sufferers, the condition lasts only until adulthood, probably only a few years or at the most ten. For other people, however, it may be a life-long affliction. It most often affects the face, upper-chest, upper-arms and back. However, an occasional spot is not the same as acne.
Acne vulgaris manifests itself in different many forms, including: whiteheads, caused by pores that are completely blocked, trapping sebum (oil), bacteria, and dead skin cells, causing a white spot on the surface; blackheads, caused by pores which are only partially blocked, allowing some of the trapped sebum, bacteria, and dead skin cells to slowly drain to the surface (the black colour is not caused by dirt, but is a reaction of the skin’s own pigment, called melanin, with the oxygen in the air); papules, which are inflamed, red, tender bumps with no head and pustules, which are similar to whiteheads, but are inflamed, and look like red circles with a white or yellow centre.
Whiteheads do not usually last for a long time; blackheads do last a long time and pustules are what people usually refer to as spots or zits. Severe acne vulgaris is distinguished by nodules and cysts. A ‘nodule’ is a rather larger and much more painful sort of pustule and may often last for months. Nodules are large, hard bumps just under the skin. They often result in scarring and should never for any reason be squeezed, since this could make them last for months longer.
A ‘cyst’ may appear like a nodule, but it is full of pus and has been defined as having a diameter of at least 5mm and, again, can leave scars and cause pain. Squeezing an acne cyst can cause a more severe infection and more acute inflammation which can last quite a bit longer than if it had not been squeezed. Skin experts have methods of lessening the swelling and avoiding scarring with both nodules and cysts. It is just not true that acne sufferers are not careful about their hygiene.
Indeed, it is a little-known fact that, excessive washing can exacerbate acne. There are many, many useless ‘cures’ in the shops and many, many old wives’ tales. However, any honest dermatologist would tell you that there is no sure-fire remedy for acne and that the sufferer has to follow a deliberate regimen of cleaning until the acne just ‘goes away’ of its own accord.
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