We recently encountered 5 patients with new-onset acne after the placement of a levonorgestrel-releasing intrauterine system (LNG-IUS). The women ranged in age from 31 to 36 years and all developed inflammatory papules localized to the jawline and/or back 1 to 3 months after insertion of an LNG-IUS. None of the patients were aware that acne could be a side effect of the device. Therapy was init...

INTRODUCTION Acne is one of the commonest diseases to afflict humanity. Anecdotally, the use of CAM in acne is widespread. In this review the empirical evidence for the efficacy of CAM modalities is examined and the context for their use discussed. METHODS Searches were made of the MEDLINE, EMBASE, AMED (Allied and Complementary Medicines), Cochrane, and DARE databases using the search terms ...

Current clinical and microbiological information on acne fails to demonstrate a clear association between particular species, including Propionibacterium acnes, and disease, and the disease continues to be a considerable problem. To test if acne is associated with hitherto uncultured bacteria residing in diseased skin follicles, sequencing and phylogenetic analysis of approximately 5,700 amplif...

For patients who fail traditional acne therapy or experience side effects, other treatments are needed. Cephalexin has been noted to be efficacious in some instances. This study aimed to assess the therapeutic efficacy of cephalexin for acne. A retrospective chart review of 93 acne patients treated with cephalexin was performed. Data collection included patient demographics, other acne therapie...

The purpose of this study was to investigate the efficacy of phototherapy with a newly-developed 1450-nm diode laser in patients with mild to moderate acne. An open study was performed in acne patients who were treated up to five times with a two week interval. Acne lesions were reduced by 63%. Only one patient discontinued treatment due to vesicle formation as an adverse effect. Phototherapy u...

Acne fulminans is a rare and serious condition characterized by the sudden onset of nodular and ulcerative acne lesions associated with systemic symptoms. It has been recognized a subset of patients with a sudden worsening of acne, often during treatment with oral isotretinoin, but without the strong presence of systemic involvement. Recognized by some authors as "pseudo-acne fulminans" or " ac...

Acne vulgaris is a chronic inflammatory disease that affects the pilosebaceous unit. Recent studies have shown an increasing number of cases of acne in adult women. These cases are predominantly normoandrogenic and have show some clinical differences compared to adolescent acne. In addition to the physical aspects, acne has a strong psychosocial impact and can lead to the onset of signs and sym...

Treatment objectives and pharmacoeconomic considerations are important when developing guidelines that are effective and rational. Canadian Acne Treatment Guidelines were last published in 1995. New guidelines were recently developed to incorporate therapeutic advances and data from more recent studies. Isotretinoin fulfills the major objectives of acne treatment and has clear pharmacoeconomic ...

Acne is a chronic and multifactorial skin condition affecting about 80% of persons aged 11 to 30 years, the majority of whom are adolescents (Morelli, 2007, Shamban and Narurkar, 2009, Zaenglein and Thiboutot, 2006). Although acne has no cure and has the potential to cause emotional distress and permanent scarring, proper treatment can control the disease and greatly limit the morbidity. In rec...

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES Non-communicable diseases may reflect an evolutionary mismatch between our human ancestry and modern environments. To explore the mismatch hypothesis for Acne vulgaris, we studied the prevalence and severity of acne in Dogon adolescents in Mali, West Africa. METHODOLOGY We graded the prevalence and severity of acne in 1182 Dogon adolescents aged 11-18 years from nine...