|
|
Our Experts answer your frequently asked questions.
Question: I am an Black woman who has acne scarring. I am interested in any treatment that would lighten without causing hyper-pigmentation. Also, I have some skin tags on my neck for removal. It is my hope that the staff has had experience/famaliarity with African American skin and it's specific needs.
Answer: African American skin with acne scarring can be treated with bleaching creams like hydroquinone if the "scarring" is a discoloration problem. If the problem is texture and you are wanting the acne scar smoothed out, there are very few ways to treat it without causing discoloration problems. I have a lot of experience working with African American skin and I would be happy to take a look and discuss your options with you. Our consultations are always complimentary.
Question: Are there any gentle, natural products you can recommend for horrible cystic acne and very sensitive skin?
Answer: There are many causes of acne ranging from hormonal imbalances to hydration imbalances in the skin. The combination of cystic acne and sensitivities further complicates the problem because a lot of acne topical products can be irritating. Sometimes a combination of topical products along with oral medications can be helpful. We are also treating many acne patients with a combination of intense pulsed light and levulon therapy. Levulon is a photosensitizing agent that is applied to the skin prior to an intense pulsed light treatment which intensifies the light and drives the light energy down into the follicle that can help shrink the sebaceous gland and improve acne. This may require three or more treatments.
Natural products may not do the trick alone, but its important to prescribe products that you will tolerate and not irritate your skin. Often trying products for the first time, especially if they are medical grade can be irritating initially but as your skin builds tolerance and the health of your skin improves, they become less irritating.
We do complimentary consultations and either I or our nurse practitioner would be able to determine what would be an appropriate treatment option for you.
Question: I have acne, acne scars and strech marks on my back, I know
that some treatments are expensive, I would like to know if there is an effective, but affordable treatement for my situation.
Answer: Depending on the severity of the acne and the nature of the scarring depends on the type of treatments that may be beneficial for you. Resurfacing actual scar tissue is very costly (a few thousand dollars) and carries a long healing period with it as well. If the scarring is more discoloration, Intense Pulsed Light can be appropriate which with a series of treatments can help even out the discoloration.
Sometimes antibiotics or topical lotions can be beneficial to improve the active breakouts.
Treatment for stretch marks has not proved to be all that effective but it greatly depends if the stretch marks are recent or older (more than 6-12 months old).
We would be happy to take a look at the areas of concern and one of our nurses can develop a treatment plan that works with your lifestyle and budget.
|
|
|
