ARTICLES

Acne Treatment With Topical Antibiotics

Acne infection is commonly treated with topical antibiotics. Topical antibiotics kill the bacteria P. acnes and also help keep the gland unblocked. As topical antibiotics are safer to use for a long period compared to oral antibiotics, they are preferred for moderately infected acne. The common antibiotics used topically are- Tetracycline, Erythromycin, Metronidazole and Clindamycin. Clindamycin is the most popular antibiotic for topical application. Before we discuss about them individually, let us first know more about the cause of acne.

Inflammed Acne-Treatment With Topical Antimicrobials

Acne inflammation and infection causes acne to grow in to the stage of cysts and nodules. The bacteria P. acnes that infect acne should be controlled at an earlier stage otherwise the acne damages the skin cells deeper inside and causes scars. If you control your acne at the stage of pimples, your acne will get resolved without any scarring. This prevention is done by using antimicrobials. Antimicrobials kill the P.acnes bacteria and inhibit their growth. Let us look at the topical antimicrobials that are commonly used to treat acne.

Acne Treatment With Oral Antibiotics

Oral antibiotics work by removing the p.acne bacteria and decreasing inflammation. However there is a big challenge today in using modern antibiotic – that is, over-prescription of antibiotic. The result is a growing resistance to these drugs which means that diseases that once could have been wiped out with a course of antibiotics may now have dire potential.