There are many medications available only by prescription for persons that suffer from acne. Topical medications are applied directly to one’s skin and may be helpful in cases of acne found to be mild to severe. Systemic medications work internally and are often useful for moderate acne problems. These medications can offer important help in the treatment of acne and work by attacking factors that cause acne. For the best long-term solution to an acne problem, your doctor might combine different therapies. The following are some of the prescription acne medications for adults that work best:

Antibiotics (Oral)

Many patients who have persistent, severe acne find that oral antibiotics offer an excellent choice for therapy. Like the topical antibiotics, the oral medications work to help reduce the population of the bacteria P. acnes and in turn reduce the inflammation. Treatment using oral antibiotics requires an initial higher dosage that is gradually reduced as the problem is resolved. In most cases, the antibiotics are used for less than six months.

As very effective tools for eliminating bacteria, antibiotics locate and kill dangerous forms of bacteria that are responsible for infection, which additionally works well for preventing acne outbreaks as well as for treating existing or still-forming pimples. One of the most popular antibiotic for treating acne is doxycycline. This antibiotic was traditionally prescribed to people who were suffering from bacterial infections such as gonorrhea and chlamydia. As time passed, however, it became an accepted treatment for acne. This medication is commonly associated with tetracycline given the measure of efficacy that it affords users in reducing inflammatory acne and pimples.

As time passes, antibiotics become less effective on P. acnes bacteria as they grow in resistance to it. When the bacteria becomes resistant the antibiotics can no longer control it. At that time, the treatment must be changed to an alternative treatment or antibiotic prescribed by the dermatologist. Broad-spectrum oral antibiotics have been shown as effective in use for the treatment of acne, including:

• Erythromycin
• Tetracycline and derivatives

Acne sufferers who do not gain visible benefits from the use of drugs such as erythromycin and tetracycline treatments will often start a doxycycline acne treatment. While this medication is typically safe for use, there are many things that patients will need to remember when taking this drug.Oral Contraceptives

These medications are often effective at clearing acne in women with overactive sebaceous glands and offer a solution for long-term therapy for treatment of acne. These oral contraceptives are not appropriate for women who use tobacco, have blood-clotting disorders, over age 35 or those with a history of migraines, unless so advised by a gynecologist.

Holistic Acne Treatments

So what about a holistic or natural approach? Many medical professionals will tell you that natural treatments are based on old wives’ tales, but there are many shortcomings of common acne drugs that are swept under the rug. Here are five concerns about conventional acne medications that are causing more and more people to seek holistic acne cures:

• Prolonged usage can lead to other serious health problems. A man in New Jersey recently was awarded $25 million because his acne medication gave him a bowel disorder that resulted in having his colon removed.
• Meds often prescribed for acne likesulfur-based drugs and antibiotics don’t always work.
• Conventional medications for acne can make your skin much worse,especially in the short term.
• Even when conventional medications are effective, they are simply covering up the symptoms of a more widespread imbalance within the body. Most acne sufferers are understandably so desperate for results that they are unconcerned about this, but holistic acne treatments take the entire body into account.
• Antibiotic resistance: this is an under-the-radar medical problem that is gradually getting more attention.