Acne

Acne is a chronic inflammatory, exclusively human disease of the pilosebaceous unit, mostly affecting the sebaceous gland follicles – usually referred to as sebaceous follicles – located on the face, chest, shoulders, and back, where they are most common. Acne is the most common disease affecting all ages and ethnic groups and is the leading dermatologic diagnosis with 10.2 million diagnoses. Acne is considered a problem that occurs in adolescence, but the prevalence of adult acne is 3 % in men and between 11 and 12 % in women. We can distinguish different types of acne: acne neonatorum and infantile, acne vulgaris (teenage acne), adult acne, acne conglobata, acne inversa, and acne fulminans. Diet, weight loss, sunlight, and cosmetics/drugs are differently related to acne symptoms. The treatment of acne is based on different approaches such as cosmetological and cleansing agents, moisturizing agents, sebum regulators, keratolytics, and photoprotection to support medical treatment based on topical (retinoids, antibiotics, alpha hydroxy acids, and chemical peels) and systemic medical treatment (oral antibiotics, oral isotretinoin, hormonal therapy)