Acne Medications Treatment – The Old And New Schools

There have been so many treatments attempted in the treatment of acne since the condition has been around from the origins of mankind. Of these acne treatments, many have been discarded as obsolete or downright antiquated; others have been put away as heathen, while some have been improved upon. Overtime, some new acne treatments and medications have surfaced, all with varying degrees of success in proving relief for patients suffering from acne. In modern day, there are still many questions surrounding acne cure, but you may want to take a look at the old school, and the evolution of acne treatments to the new school.

In ancient times, bathing in hot, sulfurous, water was the chief way by which acne sufferers were treated for the condition. The water often contained a number of other minerals as well, and for a fact, some people were healed this way. It is however unclear whether this treatment is generic of if the results obtained at the time were mere flukes. What cannot be denied is the fact that several modern day medications for acne still use sulfur and sulfur derivatives as major constituents.

The nineteenth century also produces a lot of records that prove that dermatologists used sulfur in the treatment of acne. Because the element was believed to dry the skin, the oil secreted by the ailing or failing sebaceous glands can be removed or reduced by it. By the beginning of the twentieth century, benzoyl peroxide gradually became more popular. There is in fact no question about the efficacy of this medication for acne because it is still largely in use even in the United States today. Shortly after this, laxatives gradually gained acclaim as a cure for ‘chastity pimples’, and remained that way until antibiotics became available.

Antibiotics have always had beneficial effects on acne, and they were taken orally at the time because of these anti-inflammatory effects, the chief culprit being of tetracycline. Soon, they started being made to be applied directly onto the skin in form of a lotion of a cream. But it wasn’t until the 1960s that Tretinoin, or Retin A, was found to be an effective acne cure; except that Accutane and Roaccutane arrived about two decades later, an improvement on Tretinoin called isotretinoin.

By the end of the twentieth century many advancements in medical science and technology allowed for such acne cures as laser treatment to be introduced, which was quickly followed by an enhancement to blue and red light therapy by the turn of the century. These innovations notwithstanding, many ancient practices such as acupuncture for the treatment of acne, proper anti-acne dieting, Ayuverdic acne cures, and a whole lot of other treatments stood the test of time and are still even attempted today as much as any other acne cure.

Many people have their stories to tell, and you could listen to them all. What you simply must not forget is that even though you are human, you are not quite the same as everybody else. Before you make your choice amongst the various treatments that have been attempted with which to cure acne, you should spend time with a true professional. You never know, the perfect acne cure for you may just be one of them, and this pro may just be the person to show you – after a thorough and appropriate diagnosis of the type of acne you suffer from, and the nature of your skin.