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How to beat adult acne once and for all

I am 21 years old and still battling acne. I’ve tried different over-the-counter acne medications, but none help. Some seem to even make the problem worse. What do you recommend?
Common acne (acne vulgaris) is the most common skin disease, affecting about 80 percent of people some time between the ages of 11 and 30 years. Acne also can occur in newborns and adults over age 30. Without treatment, acne can sometimes result in permanent scarring, adversely effect social development in teenagers and cause feelings of depression.

Acne usually begins during the pubertal period. An increase in the production of oils by the glands of the skin, accompanied by a failure of the cells lining the pores to migrate to the surface, cause the lesions of acne: open comedomes (blackheads); closed comedomes (whiteheads); and cysts. In some forms of acne, bacteria called Propionibacterium acnes, can grow.
Some of the risk factors for developing acne include adolescence, certain medications, anabolic steroids and living in a hot, humid climate. Also, the oils in some cosmetics, hair products and suntan lotions can exacerbate acne. Acne also can worsen the week before menses and during pregnancy. Don’t worry about what you eat. Foods, such as chocolate or pizza, have not been shown to cause acne.
The treatment of acne begins with avoiding picking at, squeezing and scrubbing acne lesions. This will only make it worse. Wash your face with a gentle cleanser such as Dove or Neutrogena. Use cosmetics and lotions that are oil free and noncomedogenic (it will usually say so on the bottle).

There are many over-the-counter and prescription medicines available to treat acne. If acne doesn’t improve with over-the-counter medicines, see your physician. He or she will take into account the type and severity of acne when beginning treatment.
Treatment often begins with a topical agent such as benzoyl peroxide, antibiotics (erythromycin, clindamycin, doxycycline), or products derived from vitamin A (such as Retin-A, Renova, or Differin). Combinations of these medicines are commonly prescribed.
Acne may flare initially when starting a topical medicine. The vitamin A derived medicines, especially, are very drying and irritating to the skin when first started. They also make your skin more sensitive to the sun. Use a moisturizer and sunscreen to lessen these effects.

For more severe acne, treatment may consist of topical agents combined with oral antibiotics. Certain oral contraceptives have been shown to improve acne in women.
The most severe forms of acne are treated with Accutane. This medication can have very serious side-effects.

In most cases, acne can be successfully treated.
Write to Dr. Dennis Cardone at UMDNJ-Robert Wood Johnson Medical School, Department of Family Medicine, 1 Robert Wood Johnson Place, New Brunswick, N.J. 08903. Or e-mail him at askthedoc@umdnj.edu.

Sourced from http://www.nj.com