New Acne Treatments: The acne drugs, creams and therapies that could be coming to a shelf near you

My first encounter with acne medicine, if you will,
happened when I was twelve. My grandma just spotted a huge,
swollen bubble of a zit on my cheek. Ached by the sight of
my gruesome facial growth, grandma gestured me over to her
medicine cabinet and pleaded, "Put some turpentine on that
soar to suck that poison out". And follow that backwoods
prescription I did. Certainly, turpentine is not an FDA
approved acne drug, but by the next morning, that swollen
nodule had somehow flattened into healed skin.

Not all zit tales end in such swift bliss.

Many people tormented by pimples find no reprieve with
trusted pustule terminators like benzoyl peroxide or
antibiotics. And so researchers toil away in labs and
challenge the stamina of pimple prone skin with yet another
acne preventative. However, this summer, the entourage of
novel acne therapies could make blemishes retreat from the
skin.

Reduced dosage isotretinoin

For starters, doctors may soon prescribe the acne drug
typically reserved for the most severe cases of cystic or
nodular acne, isotretinoin, for mild to moderate cases of
acne. This past June, a study published in the Expert
Review of Dermatology found that an intermittent, low-dose
regimen of isotretinoin could mitigate potentially caustic
side effects of isotretinoin, like liver damage and extreme
skin dryness, while still effectively treating acne.

Bio-identical acne preventing agents

While isotretinoin effects acne control by reducing facial
oil secretion and bacterial counts, a recently patented
bio-product called phytosphingosine (PS) may combat pimples
by mitigating pain inducing inflammation.

Phytosphingosine (PS) is a fat that exists in upper layers
of the skin called the the stratum corneum. According to a
report in the International Journal of Cosmetic Science, a
skin-identical version of phytosphingosine exhibited
antibacterial and anti-inflammatory properties in the skin.
Researchers suspect that this novel anti-acne fat may soon
complement topical pimple treatments.

Less menacing contraceptives

If such fat laden topical acne creams prove insufficient to
tame blossoming blemishes, woman can bolster their skin
care regime with contraceptives. And with the arrival of a
new hormonal agent called drospirenone, women may enjoy
less pimples and a more pleasant period.

Doctors may prescribe an oral contraceptive blend of
spirolactone and ethinyl estradiol to female acne patients
over age 35.

Like spironolactone, drospirenone helps control acne by
reducing androgenic hormonal activity like excess facial
oil production. Yet when drospirenone displaces
spirolactone in such contraceptives, women experience
better acne control and less menstrual weight gain and
pain, while enjoying the same level efficacious birth
control.

While I don't foresee pine derivative like turpentine
stealing the acne controlling spot light from isotretinoin,
phytosphingosine, or birth control pills, I do predict that
in a generation from now, the multifaceted causes and
contributors to acne lesions will continue to baffle
scientists and continue to crowd our cabinets with
test-worthy acne antidotes. In the mean time, "Thank you
grandma."

Sources:

Pavicic, T; U Wollenweber, M Farwick & H Korting..
Anti-microbial and -inflammatory activity and efficacy of
phytosphingosine: an in vitro and in vivo study addressing
acne vulgaris. International Journal of Cosmetic Science,
June 2007; vol 29, no 3, pp 181-190.

Ramos-e-Silva, M; C da Silva & S Coelho. Oral
isotretinoin: intermittent and low-dosage regimen in acne.
Expert Review of Dermatology, June 2007; vol 2, no 3, pp
267-269.

Rapkin, A & S Winer. Drospirenone: a novel progestin.
Expert Opinion on Pharmacotherapy, May 2007; vol 8, no 7,
pp 989-999.

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Naweko Nicole Dial San-Joyz pioneered the acne trigger
approach to naturally controlling acne in her
internationally published book, "Acne Messages". San-Joyz
continues to serve the acne patients by developing
customized acne spot removal treatments for the face and
body at the San Diego based skin research firm Noixia. If
you want free tips for naturally removing acne marks, visit
http://www.Noixia.com .