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Acne Epidemiology

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Acne is a worldwide condition that affects the majority of the younger population. A condition this big would make you think there would be more known about its epidemiology. This article did a systematic review of pertinent epidemiological studies on what is known about the possible causes of acne. Epidemiology not only describes the burden of the disease in terms of incidence, prevalence and variations to age, sex, social class, ethnic group, and geography, but also has the potential to identify specific risk factors for disease occurence or progression, which may be amenable to manipulation.
The author first introduces acne in histological and clinical terms to give the reader the background information they need to understand the disease. …show more content…
There is a well recognized belief that chocolate causes or exacerbates acne, particularly among adolescents. There is, however, limited studies backing up such a claim. Two very small earlier studies had such methodological shortcomings that it was difficult to draw any conclusions. In 1975 a single-blind, placebo controlled, crossover trial in 65 male prisoners found there to be no difference in acne severity between a chocolate-eating group and a chocolate-abstinent group. This study also had major methodological flaws: methods of randomization were not described and blinding was only partly described, and there was a high risk of bias as there was no intention-to-treat analysis performed. More recently, a small, nonrandomized, uncontrolled study of 10 people found a significant increase in acneiform lesions upon consumption of chocolate made up of 100% cocoa. The question of whether chocolate worsens acne therefore remains unanswered and there is much …show more content…
The specific kind that I do suffer from is cystic acne. Cystic acne is harder to treat because it is underneath the skin rather than having an opening for topical medications to be absorbed through. It is also very painful. Discovery of risk factors or factors that exacerbate existing disease could lead to appropriate primary or secondary preventative measures and treatments. This direct quote from the article speaks a lot about how this disease affects me. “Acne vulgaris and its association with self-consciousness, anxiety in social interaction, dissatisfaction with appearance and overall impaired quality of life is well reported. A recent review of studies by Dunnet al. concluded that acne can negatively affect quality of life, self esteem and mood, and increase the risk of anxiety, depression and suicidal thoughts. Female subjects score worse than males in the Dermatology Life Quality Index and acne quality of life self-assessment score, and impact on quality of life is associated with longer acne

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