Acne vulgaris This is the most common form of acne, can range in severity from mild to relatively serious, and affect people of all ages. It is most commonly seen in teenagers at the time of puberty, when the bodily and hormonal changes that they are going through create imbalances that are the root cause of acne.

However, it is important to distinguish between having a few spots or pimples and acne vulgaris. The former is the kind of thing that will happen to everybody from time to time throughout their lives as result of the general stresses and strains of everyday life, whereas the latter can involve several different types of sores, lesions or skin blemishes:

• Whiteheads - closed and clogged skin pores
• Blackheads - clogged pores that are open to dirt at the skin surface
• Papules - reddened areas that are prominent and raised above the skin surface.
• Pustules - pimples or small bumps on the surface of the skin that generally contain pus.

In more severe cases of acne vulgaris, the sufferer may develop cysts or nodules that are both painful and filled with pus. These are the kind of lesions that most commonly cause life time scarring if not treated with care and attention.

Acne rosacea This form of acne generally appears as red rashes that form between the pimples and other blemishes that are most common to acne vulgaris sufferers. This particular condition is more commonly seen in men than in women, and can require specialized treatment and care if it becomes too severe.

Acne conglobata This is a more severe condition than the last one, as it generally occurs as interconnected sores or lesions that are dotted with blackheads, whiteheads, pustules and pimples. Once your acne condition reaches this stage, it will almost certainly need medical attention, because without it, scarring (which can be mild to severe) will inevitably occur.

Acme fulminans This is very similar in etymology to acne conglobata, except that the onset of acne fulminans is generally very sudden. In this particular scenario, which is again more common in males than females, it is even possible for the muscles and joints of the body to ache at the same time as the acne breaks out.

Generally speaking, medical attention is necessary once the acne reaches this stage, most commonly with the drug Accutane. This is a very effective drug that is widely used in the treatment of acne, but it does have some fairly severe side effects of which you need to be aware.

Pregnant women especially should be extremely careful when taking Accutane (Isotretinoin) which is a naturally occurring Vitamin A derivative that is present in the blood stream.

We will look at Accutane, its effectiveness and side effects in a little more detail later.

Pyroderma faciale This is a condition that is generally seen in women aged 20 to 40 years old, and can be quite severe. It often involves the presence of painful nodules, sores and pustules that will certainly lead to scarring in the future if not dealt with in the correct way. The good news, however, is that this condition will rarely last for more than a year.