Glossary
Acne: Acne is the term for plugged pores (blackheads and whiteheads), pimples and even deeper lumps (cysts or nodules) that occur on the face, neck, chest, back, shoulders and even the upper arms. The sebaceous glands lie just beneath the skin’s surface. They produce oil called sebum, the skin’s natural moisturizer. These glands and the hair follicles within which they are found are called sebaceous follicles. These follicles open onto the skin through pores. At puberty, increased levels of androgens (male hormones) cause the glands to produce too much sebum. When excess sebum combines with dead, sticky skin cells, a hard plug, or comedo, forms that blocks the pore.
Acne Vulgaris: The medical term for common acne; inflammatory disease of pilosebaceous glands
Comedones: Uninfected sebaceous plugs impacted within follicles, the signature of noninflammatory acne. Comedones appear as whiteheads or blackheads. Whiteheads (closed comedones) are
Hair Follicle: A sac from which a hair grows and into which the sebaceous (oil) glands open. The follicle is lined by cells derived from the epidermal (outside) layer of the skin.
Mild Acne: Several inflamed pimples - red in color. Less than 20 whiteheads/ blackheads or less than 15 inflammatory red pimples or less than 30 total pimples not all inflamed.
Moderate Acne: Many inflamed pimples - red in color - and pustules (visible accumulation of pus in skin)
Neutral pH Cleanser: The pH of solutions range from a value of 1 to a value of 14. Cleansers with a pH of 7 are neutral. Cleansers with a pH above 7 are alkaline.
NSAID:
Photosensitivity: Cutaneous reaction to sunlight probably involving the immune system. It may be due to an unknown cause or occur after exposure to certain drugs or chemicals, and it is sometimes a feature of systemic diseases.
Severe Cystic Acne: Many nodular cystic lesions (with signs of scarring). Scarring occurs when new skin cells are laid down to replace damaged cells.
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