Acne appears when hair follicles and pores become clogged and produce sores on the surface of the skin. These lesions can take many forms, including abscesses, blackheads, pimples, cysts, and in some people even permanent scarring.

Acne is most commonly observed during puberty, part of the adolescent period. This is when the human organism begins to have big changes in hormone production as a result of the devoloping an adult, grown-up body. Acne can affect both genders of all ages; sometimes throughout their complete adult lives.

Pimples inflammation is the most evident sign in regard to the appearance of the skin. Inflammatory acne can mostly be located on the face, but can appear on a variety of other spots on the body like the chest, back, neck, upper arms, shoulders, scalp, and legs. The pimple is the most prevalent form of acne. A pimple appears when a pore or hair follicle becomes irritated and the skin surface is then marked with small red sores. There are some observable symptoms before the blemish is fully formed. These symptoms include closed comedos, open comedos, cysts, and pustules. Blackheads are clogged pores that have a darker color with an opening at the surface of the skin. Whiteheads are a bit different in that they don't show an open ended pore. If they are left alone for a couple of days, they will commonly turn into pustules. If the zits are squeezed or popped, they will generally develope a more serious infection and could end up in a scar. So leaving pimples alone is a good idea.

Inflammatory and non-inflammatory are the main kinds of acne. Two categories compose the non-inflammatory type: closed comedos and open comedos. A closed comedo is usually known as a whitehead and appears on the skin as a small yellow or white bump. The open comedo is usually known as a blackhead.

Pustules are discolored sores that are filled with pus and have a whitish or yellowish color. They can form from whiteheads or blackheads. They are round sores that present inflammation derived from aggravated sebaceous glands. The body has lots of sebaceous glands that secrete sebum, an oil-like chemical. When sebum is in contact with the skin for a long time, the pores and hair follicles become infected and irritated. Cysts are larger pus filled sores that can be seen on the surface but are in reality deep within the epidermis.

No matter what kinds of blemishes or scars there are, there is a good treatment that is available. Understanding about the different kinds of acne will give the acne patient a better idea of the best treatment product for a particular problem. Remember, you don't have to live all your life with an acne problem. With a bit of time and research, anybody can find the treatment that is right for them.