Free guide · Scarlet Beast En español →
Acne: the types, what causes it, getting a diagnosis, treatment, and living with it
For any teen or adult with pimples, blackheads or deep, painful lumps; for anyone whose skin has them feeling ashamed or anxious; and for the people beside them. The National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases (NIAMS, part of the NIH) says acne is a common skin condition that happens when hair follicles under the skin become clogged with oil and dead skin cells; that it is most common in teens and young adults; and that for most people it goes away by the time they reach their thirties. It also says acne can make you feel embarrassed, shy or anxious, and to talk to your doctor if it does. This page passes on, by name, what NIAMS says: the types; who gets it, what causes it and what makes it worse; the visit and who treats it; the treatments NIAMS names; and caring for your skin, scars and dark spots. It builds the words to say to a provider, and prints a card for the visit.
A word with a dotted line under it, like this, opens its official definition, quoted from a U.S. government glossary.
Right now
- Thinking about suicide: call or text 988, any time (ours). How you feel about your skin is not vanity. See Depression and Anxiety.
- Trouble breathing, or swelling of the face, lips, tongue or throat after a new medicine or skin product, or anyone in danger right now: call 911 (ours).
- Pregnant, could become pregnant, or breastfeeding: tell the doctor or a pharmacist before you use any acne medicine, including one from the store (ours).
More help
- Skin: A rash, an itch, or skin: find the right page · Rosacea · Hidradenitis suppurativa.
- How you feel: Depression · Anxiety.
- Care and costs: Symptom diary · Medicines list · When you need a doctor and can’t pay · Get ready for the appointment.
- In a crisis: Help right now (988, 911). All our free tools.
This page and its wording were written with AI (Claude) for Scarlet Beast (our AI policy). No doctor, nurse or therapist has reviewed it. The facts were read on October 16, 2026 on NIAMS’s Acne page, both parts: Overview, Symptoms, & Causes and Diagnosis, Treatment, & Steps to Take (NIH, last reviewed July 2023). Its Spanish twin, Acné (August 2023), is much shorter and names no medicine; our Spanish page says where a fact comes from the English page. Ours: 988 for thoughts of suicide; 911 for trouble breathing or a swollen face, lips, tongue or throat, or anyone in danger; telling the doctor or a pharmacist before any acne medicine if you are pregnant, could become pregnant or are breastfeeding; not stopping a prescribed medicine on your own; seeing a provider for deep, painful lumps or scarring; that how you feel is not vanity; notes and dated photos; asking what each choice would change, how long to give it, its side effects and what it costs; and the order of the steps. What we left out: any brand, dose or strength, any food list, home remedy, supplement or product NIAMS does not name, and NIAMS’s research pages. This page saves nothing and loads no trackers.