To treat your acne properly, you should be aware of certain acne treatment principles. Once you understand the correct principles of the best treatment of acne, the control of acne becomes easy.

Acne Treatment Principles:

• The aim of medical therapy of acne is not to achieve cure of the disease (which is practically impossible), but to get rid of the acne before it causes scarring and pigmentation and achieve long lasting remissions.
• Treatment of acne has to be individualized according to the grade of acne, severity, extend of involvement, age and sex of the patient. Hence all treatment suggestions may not be suitable for all acne sufferers.
• The effect of treatment will be visible only after about 2-4 weeks of starting treatment.
• Duration of treatment also differs from person to person. No medication should be stopped abruptly unless directed by your dermatologist.
• Some topical medications can cause flare up during the first 1-3 weeks. This does not warrant discontinuation of treatment. The treatment may be stopped for a couple of days or duration of application can be reduced.
• Minimize sun exposure while using medications such as retinoids.
• The advices provided on these pages are only a guideline to the best treatments available for acne. This cannot replace the face to face consultation with a dermatologist or an acne care physician.
• Do not try OTC preparations on your own or the advice of acquaintances. These may actually irritate your skin and cause flare ups of acne.
• Do not use steroid preparations on the face. These will temporarily reduce the facial eruptions, but eventually will worsen the situation and damage the skin.
• Most acne preparations have a peeling effect. Hence, when you start using them, the face may become reddish, dry or flaky. If there is severe dryness and irritation, discontinue treatment and consult your dermatologist.