Acne Treatment in Mumbai – Cost, Before and After Results, Laser Treatment
This article is written by Dr Samreen Khan, one of the best dermatologist in Mumbai. She is a board certified dermatologist who specializes in acne treatment in Mumbai and is considered one of the best acne specialist in Mumbai. She is also the best dermatologist in Mumbai for acne treatment in all skin types. Dr Samreen Khan specializes in teenage acne treatment, adult acne treatment, cystic acne treatment, hormonal acne treatment and acne treatment in sensitive skin type.
What is acne?
You know you have acne when you repeatedly get boils, pimples or zits on the face. This chronic inflammatory skin disease affects 85% of Indians at some point in their life. It most commonly affects the face. But other areas such as back, shoulders, chest, arms and buttocks may also be involved.
Acne lesions can be of several types.
Comedones – blocked pores, black heads, white heads.
Papules – painful, red, raised bumps.
Pustules – small pus-filled boils.
Nodules – painful, hard, red lumps inside the skin.
Cysts – large, painful, boils that ooze blood and pus.
Best options for acne treatment in Mumbai.
Advanced Acne treatment at Fab Aesthetics, Mumbai.
Chemical Peels
Chemical peels are a very effective treatment option for all types of acne. A chemical peel is a liquid or gel which we apply on the skin and wipe off after a few minutes. This application reduces the number and size of new acne after each session. The existing acne dries up and marks also start to lighten.
The skin oiliness reduces and your face looks even toned. We use skin peels containing salicylic acid and azelaic acid at our clinic in Mumbai. Other popular peels are Jessner’s solution, retinol peels and mandelic peels.
Intra-lesional treatment
Intra-lesional treatment uses an injection of antibiotic and anti-inflammatory medicine to treat cystic acne. This cystic acne treatment works within 48 hours. The advantage of intra-lesional treatment is that there is no scar after acne the acne heals.
Comedone extraction
Comedone extraction is a procedure we use in treatment of comedonal acne. We extract blackheads and whiteheads from the skin under cream anesthesia. After we remove the comedones, the new acne formation reduces.
Microdermabrasion
Diamond tip microdermabrasion is effective if you are dealing with mild breakouts. Besides removing dead skin cells that clog pores, the procedure also reduces oiliness.
Microdermabrasion is also very helpful in preventing acne recurrence. And it can give you a smooth and shiny skin tone.
LED therapy
Blue LED light is a part of mild to moderate acne treatment. Blue light reduces the activity of sebaceous glands without any skin irritation. So they produce less oil. Besides this, blue light may also kill the acne-causing bacteria or P. acnes.
Photodynamic therapy
Photodynamic therapy is similar to LED light therapy. But the difference is that we apply a solution containing 20% ALA on the skin. This solution boosts the activity of a light-based skin treatment. We reserve this treatment for acne that is not responding to other acne treatments.
Laser acne treatment
Laser therapy of acne involves non-ablative laser called Q switched Nd:Yag. Unlike laser resurfacing, this treatment has no down time.
The treatment is popularly called Carbon Facial or Carbon Laser Peeling. It clears your pores and reduces blackheads and whiteheads. It also kills acne causing bacteria and reduces excess oil. This gives you a clearer and brighter skin tone.
Skin Care and Acne Treatment Creams
Retinol cream and gels
Retinoids are Vitamin A like substances which remove dead cells and reduce inflammation. They also make sure that acne forming bacteria can’t grow on your skin. I prefer to use creams and gels containing this ingredient in thick and oily skin type. It is also used in grade 1 and grade 2 acne.
Some of the popular ingredients are Adapelene and Retinol. The most common side effects of these acne creams is redness, irritation, rashes and pigmentation. This is the reason why dermatologists advice a short application time along with lots of sunscreen and moisturizer.
Antibiotic creams and gels
Cutibacterium acnes is the most common bacteria causing acne. Antibiotic creams, gels and lotions are used to stop this bacteria from growing. We use ingredients such as Clindamycin, Dapsone and Nadifloxacin in the treatment of grade 2 and grade 3 acne.
The main drawback of these gels is that the bacteria can rapidly develop resistance to antibiotic creams. If your antibiotic suddenly stops working, you are probably developing resistance. The best way to prevent this is to combine your antibiotic cream with a retinoid gel.
Anti-fungal creams and lotions
We use anti fungal creams and lotions if we suspect fungal over growth on your skin. Fungi such as Pityrosporum ovale and Malassesia furfur are normally present on our skin. When these fungi over grow, it leads to redness, flakiness and burning sensation.
We suspect fungal acne when your skin is itchy or you have dandruff in your scalp. Most commonly used anti fungals are Ketoconazole, Zinc pyrithione and Selenium sulfide.
Exfoliating creams
Keratolytic or exfoliating creams rapidly remove dead cells and speed up skin recovery. Some of these ingredients have anti-inflammatory action. And some have an anti-bacterial effect. I commonly use exfoliating ingredients such as Salicylic acid, Benzoyl peroxide and Alpha hydroxy acid along with antibiotic creams.
One important thing to remember is that you should never combine exfoliating creams with retinoids. This is because it can cause severe irritation and burns of the skin.
Oral Medicines for acne treatment
- Retinoids – Isotretinoin
- Oral Antibiotics – Azithromycin, Clarithromycin, Minocycline, Doxycycline, Dapsone
- Anti-fungals – Fluconazole, Terbinafine
- Oral contraceptive pills – Estrogens along with norgestimate, norethindrone or drospirenone
- Anti-androgens – Spironolactone, Cyproterone acetate
- Insulin sensitizers – Metformin, Alpha Lipoic Acid, Chromium polynicotinate
- Herbs and Vitamins – Melatonin, Ashwagandha, Saw palmetto, Calcium d glucarate, Chaste berry
What is the cost of acne treatment in Mumbai?
The cost of acne treatment starts at Rs 2700 at Fab Aesthetics, Mumbai. Complete acne treatment along with acne scar treatment ranges between Rs 10000 to Rs 40000. The cost of post acne pigmentation treatment starts from Rs 3750 and the cost of microneedling for acne scars treatment starts at Rs 8500. While the cost of laser treatment of acne scars in Mumbai starts at Rs 4500 per session at Fab Aesthetics. Cosmetic surgery for acne scar revision starts at Rs 15000.
Acne Treatment FAQs
What causes acne?
Our skin has a normal renewal cycle. When this cycle gets disturbed it leads to problems in the skin health.
In acne prone skin the oil glands produce excess sebum. Alternatively the sebum may be thick and inflammatory. Furthermore, this sticky sebum along with the dead cells block the pores of the skin. Which in turn allows overgrowth of bacteria called Cutibacterium Acnes.
These bacteria cause inflammation and pus formation leading to acne formation.
Who can get acne?
Acne can affect almost anyone. It can affect men as well as women. Men are more prone to severe forms of acne such as nodulocystic acne. While, women are more prone to hormonal or inflammatory acne.
Such acne is usually genetic and may run in families.
Call 84339 66645 to book your consultation with Dr Samreen Khan.
Best Dermatologist in Mumbai
What are the different types of acne?
Juvenile acne
When acne affects teenagers, pre-teen children and young adults, it is called ‘juvenile acne’. This type of acne occurs mostly at puberty. Both, girls as well as boys between 12-24 years of age can get juvenile acne.
Adult acne
When acne affects adults it is called ‘adult acne’. This type of acne may start as sudden onset. And it may occur in adults who have not had acne when they were young. Men and women between the age group of 24-34 years seem to be affected the most.
Infantile acne
Acne that affects babies or infants is known as ‘infantile acne’. Infantile acne occurs due to maternal hormones affecting the infant.
Hormonal acne
Acne that is caused by an underlying hormonal imbalance is known as ‘hormonal acne’. The most common cause of hormonal acne in women is Poly Cystic Ovarian Syndrome or PCOS. Other hormonal conditions such as high prolactin levels, oestrogen dominance and Endometriosis are also becoming increasingly common causes of acne.
Women with hormonal acne often experience a pre-period flare up of acne. Men too can be affected by hormonal acne due to high testosterone levels.
Stress acne
When you are stressed there is a rise in the hormone Cortisol. This in turn disturbs other hormones in your body. Not just that; it also disturbs the normal healthy bacteria in your gut. Which in turn impacts your immunity and causes inflammation in your body.
All this negative balance together leads to stress acne.
Acne cosmetica
Acne may occur due to the frequent use of greasy or ‘comedogenic’ products. This is known as ‘acne cosmetica’. Shared makeup and unclean makeup brushes carry bacteria that can cause acne.
Grades of acne
Grade 1 – Comedonal acne
When acne is in the form of whiteheads and blackheads it is called ‘comedonal acne’. These comedones or blocked pores may eventually get infected by Cutibacterium Acnes and turn into inflammatory papules and pustules.
Grade 2 – Papulo-pustular acne
When acne is dominated by painful, red bumps called papules and pus-filled small boils called pustules, it is called ‘papulo-pustular acne’. Black heads and whiteheads may also be present but are fewer in number.
Grade 3 – Nodulo-cystic acne
This type of acne has large, hard, extremely painful lumps under the skin called ‘nodules. These nodules may eventually turn into large, painful, soft boils that ooze pus and blood called cysts.
Grade 4 – Acne conglobata
This is the most severe form of acne. Here, several pus oozing boils seem to join and form large, painful areas. Most common areas involved are the cheek or chin.
What are the factors that aggravate acne?
Stress
Many people often observe that their acne gets worse during their projects, deadlines, exams and other stressful episodes during their life.
Diet
Acne becomes more inflamed with increased consumption of foods that have a high glycemic index such as refined carbohydrates. Foods rich in trans fats may also have a similar effect. We are also noticing a strong link between severity of acne and diet rich in poultry or dairy products from animals that were being given hormone and antibiotic injections.
Skincare
The most important skin care mistake is using products that are not right for your skin type. Secondly, not cleansing your skin well. Another important mistake is over use of products and home remedies. Then come the unclean makeup brushes, expired makeup and sharing of makeup.
Irregular periods
Women with a moderate hormonal imbalance often have irregular periods and persistent acne. Most women with a mild hormonal imbalance have pre-period flare up of acne. Skipped periods usually means severe hormonal imbalance and is usually associated with severe or cystic acne.
Workout supplements
Health supplements such as whey protein may cause acne to flare up in people who have acne prone skin. Cyclical hormone therapy, testosterone and growth hormone injections can also induce acne in otherwise healthy individuals.
Unclean scalp
If you have acne prone skin, then keeping your scalp clean is of utmost importance. People who have an oily skin and an oily scalp have a general over growth of the yeast ‘Malassezia’ in their hair follicles which has been implicated in acne, seborrheic dermatitis and Pityrosporum folliculitis. All these conditions may co-exist in some acne prone individuals.
Medications
Certain medications such is corticosteroids, some birth control pills, anti-tuberculosis medication, anti-epileptic medication may cause acne. This type of acne usually clears when the medication is stopped.
Call 84339 66645 to book your consultation with Dr Samreen Khan.
Best Dermatologist in Mumbai
Self care to prevent acne.
Dealing with acne by yourself can be difficult. But there are some basic do’s and don’ts that will help calm down your acne and may help in preventing severe flare ups.
Cleansing
Wash your face at least twice a day with a cleanser that is free of SLS, parabens and silicones. Washing after a workout or outdoor exposure is also important.
Make up
If you need to wear makeup, make sure you double cleanse with micellar water. Check the expiry dates often and discard any makeup that smells off or looks spoilt. Clean your make up brushes every week if you have active acne or better still use disposable beauty blenders.
Skin care products
Firstly, pick skincare from reputable brands. Secondly, make sure your products are oil free and water based. Third, avoid products that have SLS, silicones, parabens, PEGs. Fourth, try not to use too many products or too much quantity of a product.
And finally, keep your skin care simple and effective.
Diet
Try to switch to locally grown, organic produce. Focus on a healthy, balanced diet. Avoid refined carbohydrates such as bread, noodles, pasta, naan, puri, white rice. Avoid refined sugar, sweetened food and desserts.
Some people benefit from avoiding poultry and dairy products. Drink plenty of water.
Exercise
Workout a good sweat every alternate day. Exercise boosts your metabolism, immunity and helps in balancing your hormones. Keep your fat percentage under check rather than your weight. A 60kg person can be all muscle and no fat or all fat and no muscle.
Why do you need acne treatment in Mumbai?
Social impact
Children and adults with acne often deal with lowered self-esteem. They may be bullied or face undue peer pressure. Acne in teenagers requires to be dealt with empathy and promptness. Starting pimples treatment at the right time not only prevents acne scarring but also prevents emotional scarring in the younger population.
Acne scars
When acne heals, it leaves pits in the skin. We call these pits ‘acne scars’. Acne scars are of several types depending upon the grade of acne.
You must understand that acne is much easier to treat than acne scars. Though acne scars can be effectively treated with acne scar treatment, the skin may never return to its original smoothness.
Hyperpigmentation
Acne may leave behind a brown spot as it heals. This is called post inflammatory hyper-pigmentation or post acne pigmentation. The best way to prevent these spots is to avoid touching or picking your acne.
Choose the best dermatologist for acne treatment in Mumbai.
Dr Samreen Khan specializes in teenage acne as well as adult acne treatment. Acne treatment should be done before the acne gets severe or causes acne scars. Dr Samreen Khan personally aims at giving her patients an acne free skin in about 2 months.
Dr Samreen Khan specialized Acne Treatment for Indian skin is a 360 protocol that assures complete acne control. This protocol is safe for sensitive skin and effective even on the most severe acne! So, if you would like to get rid of your acne permanently, head to Dr Samreen Khan Fab Aesthetics, skin clinic in Mumbai and plan your acne treatment.
Dr Samreen Khan provides the best acne treatment in Mumbai. She is considered one of the Best Acne Specialist in Mumbai, India. Dr Samreen Khan has also been awarded as the Best Dermatologist in Mumbai for Acne Treatment.
Call 84339 66645 to book your consultation with Dr Samreen Khan.
Best Dermatologist in Mumbai