Back acne, or bacne, can be one of the most painful and frustrating manifestations of acne you can deal with. Here are some back acne treatments to help you deal with this uncomfortable condition.

What Causes Body Acne?

There are basically two back acne causes, and they’re the same causes of acne on your face. They are clogged pores and infected pores. However, acne on back is harder to treat because, for one thing, it’s harder to reach. Another problem with back acne is that the skin on your back is thicker than that of your face. It also has larger pores and secretes more oil that other skin cells, causing an even bigger problem for the back acne sufferer. Instead of a pimple, you may get cysts and nodules on your back. These cysts are not only unsightly, they’re painful.

Since the pores on your back are larger, they secrete more oil than the pores on your face. When you combine that with the fact that your back is harder to clean than any other part of your body, you have a perfect situation for the creation of back acne. It’s harder to exfoliate, since you can’t reach it, and exfoliation is one of the primary treatments for acne. Body acne can be a problem for anyone, but while body acne may appear on your chest, arms, legs, shoulders, and buttocks, back acne is far more prevalent.

There is a type of back acne that people get from irritation. This can be from backpacks, weight equipment, and tight fitting clothes. If you wear tight fitting workout clothes, you may experience acne on your shoulders or buttocks. This is Acne Mechanica, and is aggravated by sweat and other moisture.

Who Gets Back Acne?

If you have acne on your face, you have a 66% probability of getting bacne. And, if you’re a guy, there’s a 20% chance that you’ll keep back acne to some degree through adulthood. While men and women both experience back acne, it’s more common in men, probably because of the presence of more pronounced hair follicles on a man’s back.

How to Treat Back Acne

There are several treatments for back acne available as prescription medication, over the counter medication, and natural remedies.

Some people get rid of back acne by getting rid of their tight fitting clothing. If you have Acne Mechanica, caused by an outside source, try to get rid of the source, whether it’s a backpack or tight fitting workout clothes.

Some back acne treatment products include alpha hydroxyl acid. This, in varying concentrations is helpful in treating mild to moderate body acne and back acne. Get a back brush for the shower or tub, and gently clean your back with the AHA.

Products that combine Benzoyl peroxide with the AHA are good products for back acne. This would include prescription acne medications, which have a good track record in causing your skin to exfoliate normally, producing healthy skin cells.

Another popular product for back acne is Accutane. It comes in pill form, which is easier than trying to apply creams to your back. You have to use it for about 20 weeks, though, to see full benefits. However, you can completely get rid of back acne with Accutane, because it actually shrinks the oil glands on your back. It often yields dramatic results with severe back acne, even permanently eliminating the problem. However, the use of Accutane to get rid of back acne may have some permanent side effects, such as joint pain, dry eyes, dry mouth, and thinning hair. This makes sense, because if it dries out your back, it’s going to dry out everything else, too.

Body Wash for Back Acne

You can also find a body wash for back acne. Murad, Neutrogena, Phisoderm, AcneFree, and OXY all make an excellent body wash for back acne. Some contain salicylic acid, others contain benzoyl peroxide. All of these body washes are available OTC, and may help your back acne and body acne.

When using body wash for back acne, be sure not to scrub the skin. Yes, it’s tempting to just get in there and wash away all of that dead skin and infection, but you’ll just irritate the skin and make the problem worse by opening it up to more bacteria.

Be sure to use the body wash for back acne for several weeks before you give up on it. And, your back may seem to break out worse at first, because the salicylic acid and benzoyl peroxide are making your skin exfoliate. If this doesn’t work, your doctor can prescribe creams and lotions that will help.

Home Remedies

There are some bacne home remedies out there. For instance, you can mix baking soda with a facial cleanser and a little bit of water. Massage the thick paste to the affected area for about one minute. When you’re done, rinse off in tepid water. Hot water will cause the pores to open widely and produce a sudden influx of oil, and cold water will cause them to close, which will contribute to pimples.

This treatment is also very helpful with sudden back acne. Just remember to be gentile with the scrubbing and care of your skin. Don’t be aggressive and irritate your skin.

Scar Treatment

Scar treatment for acne scars on back are pretty much the same as treatment for acne scars on your face. This is done with exfoliants that cause your skin to produce new skin more quickly and slough off the scarred skin. The deep scars that some people experience may require treatment from a doctor.

You can also use the baking soda paste mentioned above to treat acne scars on back, as it’s a good exfoliant.

If the homemade and OTC treatments are not effective scar treatment for you, your doctor can recommend or perform dermabrasion, chemical peels, or use lasers to reduce the scarring. A more extreme, yet sometimes necessary approach, is surgery, in which the acne scars on back are removed and skin grafts applied.