If you suffer from acne, you may have tried all sorts of things to try to curb it. That could include plastering on foundation cream, using all sorts of ointments, changing your diet and no doubt trying all the latest ‘hacks’ suggested by Tik-Tokers and other online influencers (which never work).
These efforts may have had varying levels of success, and you might find the problem eases if you are young and pass from adolescence to adulthood, as that is when hormonal influences might drop off. Others may find the problem just isn’t going away.
In addition, while most people suffer acne at some point in their lives, especially in their teens, the severity varies, as do the longer-term consequences. One reason you might want to visit a clinic for acne treatment is not just that the condition can be persistent, but also that it may leave big scars on some people’s skin – while leaving little or no marks on others.
To understand why both the condition and required treatments can differ, it is important to know about the two very different kinds of acne – hormonal and cystic.
Hormonal acne is something that arises from varied levels of hormones like testosterone, oestrogen, testosterone, and androgen. When oestrogen, for example, drops and testosterone rises, this makes skin oily, creating a favourable climate for acne-causing bacteria, and increasing the chances of suffering from it.
Cystic acne is more serious, as it can be rooted in genetics as well as environmental influences like humidity levels and cosmetics that block pores. The problem is that in this case, the bacteria penetrates beneath the skin, breaking hair follicles and causing more inflammation. This leads to more severe bacteria, more severe acne, and more scarring.
While cystic acne can be aided by exfoliation, the consumption of probiotics and sun exposure to gain the benefits of bacteria-killing UV light, this is often not enough.
In the most severe cases, cysts may need to be removed by a dermatologist. This is not a process achieved just using lasers, but an invasive process accomplished by surgical excision. It can be a messy and unpleasant business, although the proliferation of online videos of such procedures shows many have a macabre fascination with them.
What laser treatment can do for existing acne is to do what the sun can – the blast of UV radiation can kill off a lot of bacteria, which removes the primary cause of the skin complaint. It can then smooth out the skin to reduce scarring.
It is worth noting, however, that whether your acne is hormonal or cystic, lasers alone will not solve it. Other treatments will complement this. Moreover, multiple treatments will be needed to have major effects; if you sign up for treatment, be prepared for this to take a bit of time.
As noted above, more may need to be done to treat a cyst, but overall, the important thing to note is that whatever the cause of your acne, you don’t have to suffer in silence. Laser treatment can play a significant part in reducing both the incidence of it and the scarring that can result.
