What Can Help to Treat Severe Acne?

If you’ve been experiencing painful flare-ups of pimples and pustules lately, you might want to know: What is considered severe acne? Our New Jersey-based South Jersey Skin Care & Laser Center team can assess your skin and help you determine what type of acne you have—as well as provide treatments to clear it.

Severe, inflammatory acne is the most serious form of the condition. If you have severe acne, you are likely to experience frequent breakouts on the face, chest, and back, or sometimes the jawline and neck. These types of breakouts affect the deeper layers of skin—and unlike milder forms of acne, there is usually inflammation. In addition to papules and pustules, you’ll also have nodules and cysts. Severe acne is often very painful.

Some other signs of severe acne are widespread breakouts, redness, and scarring.

Over-the-counter medications usually won’t be enough to help your skin. Happily, it’s possible to treat this type of acne with other measures.

Since severe acne is likely to cause scarring, it’s best to have it treated as early as possible. Furthermore, the condition can take a toll on your self-esteem, leading to anxiety and depression. Treatments can prevent scars from developing while also boosting your confidence. However, getting this form of acne under control usually isn’t a quick and easy process. Typically, skin care experts will recommend antibiotics combined with a topical product that’s applied to the skin. Antibiotic creams, gels, and lotions can kelp to kill the bacteria and reduce inflammation.

However, due to the wide range of certain medications’ side effects, patients may want to carefully consider whether prescription medications such as isotretinoin are right for them and consider an energy-based treatment instead.

Cutera’s AviClear is the first and only FDA-cleared device that can treat mild to severe acne. This breakthrough treatment selectively targets and controls the sebaceous glands in the skin. These glands are responsible for producing sebum, an oily substance that triggers and intensifies acne breakouts. Current studies show that the results from AviClear may last for up to nine months or longer following the recommended three sessions. Subsequent flare-ups of acne tend to be shorter, less intense, and less frequent.

Our New Jersey-based South Jersey Skin Care & Laser Center can explain more. Call us at (856) 810-9888 or submit a contact form to reach out to our team and schedule a consultation.