Clear Clinic Skin Care Blog

8Oct

Best Zit Zapping Tips

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When a pimple pops up on the morning of your big presentation, it is important to have the best zit zapping tips up your sleeve! Dr. Schweiger notes that, “Acne is not solved overnight, meaning that it can take weeks for prescription medications to clear acne. However, there are a few tricks to keep in mind that will get rid of your pimple quickly.”

Best Zit Zapping Tips:

Pick up the phone! Call the Clear Clinic first thing in the morning to schedule a quick visit for a cortisone injection. This tiny injection of an anti-inflammatory medication will flatten out most pimples within 24 hours. The best part is that there is no downtime, so you can stop by the Clear Clinic on your way to work or over your lunch hour.
Dab on salicylic acid or benzoyl peroxide – If you don’t have the Home Cortisone Shot at home, try dabbing a bit of salicylic acid or benzoyl peroxide directly onto the pimple. Both medications help to decrease active acne.
Schedule an Isolaz treatment at the Clear Clinic – The in-office Isolaz laser acne treatment combines a broad-spectrum antibacterial light with a gentle vacuum to clean out the pores. The result is a decrease in both active acne and future breakouts with no downtime.

Click here to schedule a visit for a cortisone injection at the Clear Clinic.

5Oct

Prevent Acne From Exercising

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It is a widely believed idea that regular exercise can lead to the development of acne. The truth is that exercise itself does not cause acne. Sometimes, if you wear tight clothing or a helmet, you may experience a condition called acne mechanica. Another instance of exercise ‘causing’ acne is if you do not cleanse your skin properly after exercising. The sweat and grime from the gym or outside can build up in your pores and attract the p. acnes bacteria that causes acne. Here are Dr. Schweiger’s top tips for avoiding the development of acne from exercising:

Wear loose-fitting cotton clothing – This will help to avoid tight clothing rubbing against your skin and causing acne mechanica.
After exercising, wash with a salicylic acid cleanser – Salicylic acid unclogs the pores and cleans any potential pore-clogging materials from your skin. Bring the cleanser into the shower with you and use it to cleanse your back and chest as well. Acne can develop on the body, as well as the face, so its important to thoroughly clean that skin after exercising as well.
Bring your acne medications to the gym – For patients who exercise in the morning, it is important to bring their acne creams with them in their gym bag. If you do not get into this habit, the morning acne medications will be overlooked. Acne medications can be applied immediately after washing your face post-exercise.
If you’re exercising outdoors, don’t forget the sunscreen! – Many prescription acne medications can make the skin slightly sun sensitive. It is important to apply a broad spectrum sunscreen prior to exercising outdoors; check to confirm that it is labeled “non-comedogenic” or “non-acnegenic,” meaning that it won’t contribute to the formation of acne.

Click here to learn more about preventing acne.

4Oct

How to Deep Clean the Pores

Posted in Acne Tips, Adult Acne, Teenage Acne by . | Leave a Comment

When it comes to cleansing acne-prone skin, one of the biggest goals is to deep clean the pores. Our skin’s pores are where the P. acnes bacteria gets trapped, along with dead skin cells, and then forms a pimple. Ridding of the dirt and cellular debris that can get trapped in the pores is a great step in ensuring that skin stays its cleanest. In addition to regular cleansing morning and night with a Clear Clinic-approved product, here are the top treatments at Clear Clinic that help empty out your pores of their acne-causing debris. These treatments are meant for both teenage acne and adult acne.

Isolaz: A relatively new procedure, Isolaz Acne Therapy is a painless and effective way to clear out the pores and kill the P. acnes bacteria. The Isolaz machine gives a one-two punch to acne. The first punch is the “deep pore purification,” which works by gently suctioning the pores with a vacuum to help loosen and extract dirt, blackheads and excess oil from deep within the pores. The second punch is the broadband light that deep cleans and purifies the pores from the inside out. There’s no downtime with Isolaz either, making it a great lunchtime treatment.

Acne Photodynamic Therapy: With photodynamic therapy (PDT), our acne patients experience another pain-free way to treat acne deep within the pores. During an Acne PDT session, Levulan (5-aminolevulinic acid), a medication that inactivates the P. acnes bacteria, exfoliate the skin to unclog pores, as well as shuts down the sebaceous glands. After the Levulan is applied, one of our board-certified dermatologists or experienced physician assistants will focus the Blue Light on the acne area for around 15 minutes.

Click here to schedule a consultation or an appointment at Clear Clinic for one of our pore-cleansing treatments.

2Oct

Red Bumps on My Arms

Posted in Adult Acne, Teenage Acne by . | Leave a Comment

Many of our patients tell us that they have “red bumps on my arms.” They assume that these red bumps are acne bumps and some of them have even tried applying acne medications to these bumps. Dr. Schweiger explains that, “These red bumps on the arms are usually not acne, but a different condition called keratosis pilaris. Keratosis pilaris occurs when there is a buildup of excess keratin around the hair follicles, which can cause the formation of the hard plug in the hair follicle.” Keratosis pilaris (commonly referred to as KP) is actually not acne at all, though its appearance often mimics the appearance of acne.

Keratosis pilaris is not dangerous and is usually asymptomatic, meaning that it is not painful or itchy. The most common areas to develop keratosis pilaris are upper arms, thighs, and buttocks, though KP can also present on the cheeks – which looks very much like acne. The treatment for keratosis pilaris is different from that of acne, because we need to address a different issue. However, some of the same ingredients can actually help with both conditions. Ingredients such as salicylic acid, retinoic acid (like retin-A), and glycolic acid help to unplug the follicle. These ingredients also help to unclog pores that attract p. acnes bacteria and lead to the development of acne. Other ingredients used to treat keratosis pilaris, such as urea creams, slough off the dead skin cells that build up around the follicle, but do not treat or prevent acne. Urea is an effective and commonly used treatment for KP, but is not used in the treatment of acne.

Click here to learn more about the medications used to treat acne.

1Oct

How to get Rid of Acne Redness

Posted in Acne At Home Treatments, Acne Scars, Acne Tips by .

It’s not just the unsightly bumps associated with acne that give the skin an unpleasant look. It’s also the redness and discoloration involved in acne breakouts that make the skin look uneven and unattractive. We’re not only talking about the redness that accompanies active acne, but also the mark that is left behind after the pimple is gone, which is known as post-inflammatory erythema.

What are the best ways to treat, hide and rid of the redness that comes during and after acne? Here, Clear Clinic’s top tips:

Conceal acne redness with a green tinted concealer. Green counteracts redness, but you’ll need to use a skin-tinted cover up on top of the green to properly hide the redness. We suggest using a mineral powder makeup that will not irritate the skin.

Treat post-acne redness with the KTP Laser, which causes the blood vessels just below the skin’s surface to collapse, decreasing the redness left behind after active acne clears up. Chemical peels are another way to effectively treat post-acne spots. Topical prescription retinoids, which increase collagen production, are also great at improving the skin tone and texture for people with acne.

28Sep

When Can I Get Pregnant After Accutane?

Posted in Adult Acne by .

Accutane (the most-recognized brand name of the generic medication ‘isotretinoin’) is an excellent medication that is useful for treating severe, recalcitrant acne in both women and men. Although most patients take Accutane without any serious side effects, the iPledge program exists to educate patients as to what side effects they may experience while taking Accutane (and to monitor for these side effects) and to prevent women from conceiving while taking Accutane.

Dr. Schweiger explains that, “Many women of childbearing age take Accutane for their severe acne. However, since Accutane is a known teratogen, meaning that it causes birth defects, it is imperative that women do not conceive while taking Accutane. For this reason, the iPledge program requires that women of childbearing potential use two forms of birth control while taking the medication.” During the course of Accutane, you will return to the office each month to discuss any side effects and to review labwork (including a pregnancy test) that is performed each month. Since medications take time to leave your system after you stop taking them, it is important that female patients have a final pregnancy test one month after completing Accutane, to confirm that they have not conceived. One month after completing the Accutane treatment, female patients may discontinue the two forms of birth control and attempt to conceive, if they wish.

Accutane is an oral form of Vitamin A that treats acne by addressing a variety of the acne-causing factors, including decreasing sebum production, killing p. acnes bacteria, and increasing skin cell turnover to clean out clogged pores.

Click here to learn more about Accutane.

28Sep

New Research in the Fight Against Acne

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There’s new research in the treatment of acne vulgaris (commonly referred to as plain old acne). Researchers at UCLA found a virus called a bacteriaphage (also know as phage) that kills the P. acnes bacteria that lead to acne breakouts. P. acnes is the bacteria responsible for causing acne, it lives in the skin’s pores and thrives amongst dead skin cells and sebum oil. Phages act as an antidote to the P. acnes bacteria and actually kill the P. acne

Antibiotics, in combination with other therapies, such as blue light therapy and Isolaz acne therapy, are the most trusted way to effectively clear the skin. In the future, there might be a way to treat and cure acne with topical creams containing phage virus. But for now, we recommend what is proven to fight and treat acne now, that includes a skin care regimen prescribed to you by a Clear Clinic dermatologist, along with laser and light treatments, chemical peels and a healthy diet low in sugar.

27Sep

How to Treat Chin Acne

Posted in Adult Acne, Laser Acne Treatments by . | Leave a Comment

Chin acne is a frustrating phenomenon that many women experience. Unfortunately, acne on the chin doesn’t present as tiny subtle acne lesions; acne on the chin usually presents as painful, cystic nodules that last for days. These acne breakouts on the chin are often attributed to hormonal fluctuations in women. Many women notice that that their chin acne is worse in the days leading up to their menses.

Dr. Schweiger explains that, “To treat chin acne, we commonly recommend a prescription medication called Spironolactone. This medication is used off-label to block the androgen receptors, so that the acne-causing androgen hormone cannot bind at the receptor.” Spironolactone doesn’t not work instantly; like many medications, it takes at least a month to begin working. Therefore, many women at the Clear Clinic undergo in-office laser and light-based treatments for their acne. These in-office treatments typically produce improvement in active acne significantly faster than prescription medications.

Women with chin acne often see improvement in their acne while undergoing Photodynamic Therapy and the Isolaz laser acne treatment in particular. Photodynamic Therapy utilizes a medication called aminolevulinic acid, which is then activated by a blue LED light, to kill the p. acnes bacteria that leads to acne. The Isolaz laser acne treatment uses a gentle suction to clean out the pores while simultaneously using a broad-spectrum light to kill the p. acnes bacteria inside the pores. These two treatments are often performed during a short series of visits to the office.

Click here to learn more about chin acne treatments at the Clear Clinic.

24Sep

What is Acne Excoriee?

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Acne excoriee is a very common condition in which someone picks at their acne. It is not unusual for someone to pop a pimple from time to time (though we don’t recommend it!), but those people who regularly pick at their acne require special care to treat their acne excoriee. Dr. Schweiger notes that, “Acne excoriee requires a multifaceted approach, in order to treat both the causes of acne and decrease the subconscious desire to pick at your skin.”

The acne specialists at the Clear Clinic recommend a broad approach to tackling acne excoriee. In-office treatments, such as Photodynamic Therapy and Red and Blue LED Light Therapy have shown promise in the treatment of acne for patients with acne excoriee. Additionally, the Clear Clinic has a licensed psychologist, who meets with our patients to devise ways to avoid picking at their skin.

Picking at acne is undesirable, because it leads to increased inflammation on the skin and possibly an increased risk of scarring. Additionally, picking at acne lesions causes the acne to stick around on the skin much longer than it otherwise would, making nearly all of our patients wish that they hadn’t picked at their acne in the first place.

Acne excoriee requires an experienced acne specialist to treat, as it requires numerous treatments to properly treat. However, even patients with acne excoriee can have clear, radiant skin and we encourage those with acne excoriee to seek treatment as soon as possible.

Click here to learn more about acne excoriee.

21Sep

Red Marks From Old Acne

Posted in Acne Scars, Uncategorized by . | Leave a Comment

Luckily, not everyone experiences deep pitted scars as a result of their acne. However, many people are still left with other marks on their skin after the acne lesions are long gone. These red marks from old acne are referred to as post-inflammatory erythema. They commonly present after acne resolves and can be tricky to cover up with makeup. Dr. Schweiger explains that, “Post-inflammatory erythema, or the mark marks from old acne, often improve with time. However, the improvement can take up to a year, and the redness does not always completely resolve. Topical retinoids can help the skin to repair itself more quickly, though vascular lasers are the gold standard for improving red marks from old acne lesions.”

The two most effective lasers for improving the appearance of red marks from old acne both work to collapse the tiny superficial blood vessels that contribute to the appearance of redness. At the Clear Clinic, we find that the KTP laser and the Laser Genesis are the most effective treatments for post-inflammatory erythema. The VBeam is another vascular laser that can be used to collapse the tiny blood vessels. For most patients, a short series of KTP laser and Laser Genesis treatments is sufficient to improve the skin’s appearance. Neither treatment requires any downtime or special aftercare; these laser treatment can both be performed over the lunch hour or before social plans. Once the red marks have improved, they are permanently removed from the skin.

Click here to learn more about the KTP laser treatment for red marks from old acne.

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