Dr. David P. Melamed can help you eliminate your acne. There is no need to suffer with acne and acne scars.

What is Acne?
Acne is an inflammatory skin condition characterized by skin eruptions around hair follicles. Acne is most common in teenagers, but it can occur at all ages. The condition usually begins at puberty and may continue for many years. Three out of four teenagers have acne to some extent, probably caused by hormonal changes that stimulate the sebaceous (oil producing) skin glands.

Other hormonal changes related to menstrual periods, pregnancy, birth control pills, or stress can also aggravate acne.

Acne is caused when glands within the pores of the skin become plugged, because oil and skin cells accumulate faster than they can exit. The plug causes the hair follicle to bulge (causing whiteheads), and the top of the plug may appear dark (causing blackheads). If the plug causes the wall of the follicle to rupture, the oil, dead skin cells, and bacteria found normally on the surface of the skin can enter the skin and form small infected areas called pustules (also known as pimples). If these infected areas are deep in the skin, they may enlarge to form firm, painful cysts.

Treatment of Acne
Acne need not be feared as something untreatable. Dr. David P. Melamed treats acne every day from his West Los Angeles office. In recent years many effective forms of therapy have been developed.

Since acne has many forms, Dr. David P. Melamed designs an individual approach to care for successful control. Thus, the course of therapy will vary according to such factors as type of acne, it's severity and extent, and the patient's day-to-day activities.

Mild acne is treated with one or a combination of creams and solutions. The purpose of these topical medicines is to prevent new blemishes from forming. Therefore, apply these all over your affected areas, not just directly on the present pimples. In addition, in some people these creams may cause the face to become a little dry, pink or feel taught. This is normal. If your face becomes too irritated or 'raw' feeling, don't stop the creams, just decrease the frequency of application (i.e. apply every second or third day).

Moderate and severe acne is usually treated by topical medicines with the addition of antibiotic pills. Since different combinations work better for some patients than others, you are usually evaluated every four to six weeks until the acne is well controlled.

In addition to this conventional therapy, Dr. David P. Melamed, may recommend one or more of these treatments to speed healing and clearing of your acne.

Treatment of Acne Scarring
Prior to correcting acne scarring, it is generally advisable to wait until acne activity has been low or absent for several months. Scars improve with time as the body softens their appearance. The color contrast is often the most troublesome aspect of resolving large acne blemishes. These lesions may leave a flat or depressed red scar that is so obvious, patients mistake the mark for an active lesion. The color will fade and approach skin tones in 4 to 12 months. Many patients are self-conscious about the pitted and crater like scars that do not fade. These remain as a permanent record of previous severe acne. Dr. David P. Melamed may use a variety of procedures to you to remove or revise these marks:

Chemical Peel: Superficial acne scarring, and irregular pigmentation of the skin are easily treated with this technique. Chemical agents are applied to the skin, which cause the outer layer to be removed. Different chemicals and concentrations are used, depending on ones skin type and degree of scarring.

Facial Fillers: Patients with a few soft depressed scars with smooth edges respond well to facial fillers such as Restylane or Radiesse (Radiance). This natural injected is utilized under the scar to elevate it to the level of the skin. Dr. Melamed has successfully eliminated many acne scars.

If you have any questions about Acne treatment or the use of Radiance or Restylane, or any other procedure or would like to make a Complimentary Consultation please schedule and Online Appointment or call toll free 1-88-88-West LA (310-473-1734).