Acne appears when hair follicles and pores become blocked and create sores on the skin surface. These blemishes can take many forms, including pimples, blackheads, cysts, abscesses, and in some people even permanent scars.

Acne most often appears during the adolescent period that is known as puberty. This is when the human body begins to experience big changes in hormone production as a consequence of the devoloping an adult, grown-up body. Acne can affect both genders at all ages; sometimes throughout their complete adult lives.

Pimples inflammation is the most evident symptom 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 shoulders, upper arms, back, neck, scalp, chest, and legs. The most prevalent form of acne is the pimple. A pimple appears when a hair follicle or pore becomes irritated and develops small red sores on the skin surface. There are some observable symptoms before the blemish is fully formed. These symptoms include open comedos, closed comedos, cysts, and pustules. Blackheads are blocked pores that have a darker coloration with an opening at the surface of the epidermis. Whiteheads are a bit different in that they don't have an open ended pore. They will commonly turn into pustules if left alone for a couple of days. If the zits are popped or squeezed, they will generally become more infected and could become scarred. So leaving pimples alone is a good idea.

Non-inflammatory and inflammatory are the major types of acne. The non-inflammatory type is divided into two lesser categories: closed comedos and open comedos. A closed comedo is also known as a whitehead and develops on the skin as a small white or yellow bump. The open comedo is otherwise called a blackhead.

Pustules are pus filled, discolored sores, and have a yellowish or whitish color. They can appear from whiteheads or blackheads. They are round lesions that have become inflamed because of damaged sebaceous glands. The body has many sebaceous glands that secrete an oil-like chemical known as sebum. 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 appear on the surface but are in reality deep within the epidermis.

Whatever types of blemishes or scars there are, there is a proper treatment that is available. Understanding about the different types 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 proper treatment for their particular problems.