What Is Nodular Acne,![]()
Nodular acne develops deep under your skin, causing painful, red bumps. Topical treatments and oral medications can help to clear up nodular acne.
All acne begins with a trapped pore. Oil (sebum) mixes with dead skin cells, clogging your pores. This combination often causes blackheads and whiteheads to form.
Nodular acne also involves bacteria called p. acne. Although it’s normal to have this type of bacteria on your skin, it can turn into an infection when it gets trapped in your pores alongside sebum and dead skin cells. The resulting infection can go deep underneath your skin, causing the affected pores to become red and swollen.
Because it causes issues deep within the skin, nodular acne is considered a more severe form of acne. Unlike other types of acne, such as blackheads, acne nodules can’t be cleared up with over-the-counter (OTC) products alone.
What Causes Nodular Acne?
Anyone can develop nodular acne, and the cause might differ from one individual to another. This acne can be caused by one or more of the following reasons:
1. Blocked Skin Pores
Your skin pores can get blocked if you don’t exfoliate or cleanse regularly, as it removes the excess sebum produced naturally. This severe form of acne develops when the skin pores are blocked while trapping the sebum, hair, and dead skin cells. The clogged skin pores also trap the C. acnes bacteria that reside on your skin, leading to severe pain, infection, and inflammation.
2. Too Much Sweating
If you tend to sweat excessively, your skin is more prone to developing nodular acne. If your work demands you wear clothing that doesn’t absorb sweat, it increases the risk of developing these nodules. In addition, people suffering from a medical condition called hyperhidrosis with the symptom of excessive sweating have a higher chance of developing this skin condition.
3. Genetics
If any of your family members has nodulocystic acne, it increases your risk of developing it. If any one of your parents or siblings suffers from acne nodules, then the chances of your developing it are very high (4).
4. Specific Medications
Some specific ingredients can trigger nodular acne if you take medications to treat some medical conditions. For example, anticonvulsants containing phenytoin, lithium, corticosteroids, and more can worsen your acne.
5. Changes in Hormone
Teenage kids going through puberty are prone to nodular acne due to the change in their hormone levels. In adolescent boys, the androgen hormone levels increase rapidly, altering the natural composition of sebum produced by your skin and making it thicker to clog the skin pores. These clogged pores create a perfect environment for the C. acnes bacteria to thrive. Menstruating females, pregnant women, and people going through menopause may also develop nodular acne.
6. Other Factors
Makeup products and cosmetic items like body lotion or face creams can also clog the skin pores to cause nodules. In addition, high anxiety or stress levels hike the sebum secretion levels, which in turn triggers the production of the cortisol stress hormone, leading to nodular acne.
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