A recent study from the Department of Dermatology, Massachusetts General Hospital compared the differences between acne vulgaris amongst the various ethnic skin types. Acne is a common skin problem with a significant psycho-social impact on its sufferers. It is a disease characterized by inflammatory skin lesions often associated with scarring, dyspigmentation and hyperpigmentation. This study was one of the few objective studies comparing the epidemiology of acne between the racial and ethnic groups. Its aim was to identify the prevalence and different types of acne seen in women of different racial and ethnic groups. Over 2800 women participated in this study (520 Asians, 384 African Americans, 1295 Causasian, 258 Hispanic and 438 Continental Indian) ranging in age from 10 to 70 years of age. The severity and subtypes of acne were graded by looking at the types of lesions, number of lesions, scars, dyspigmentation, and hyperpigmentation. Sebum secretions and pore size were also measured. The results showed clinical acne to be more common amongst African American and Hispanic women (37%, 32% respectively) than in Continental Indian, Caucasian, and Asian (23%, 24%, and 30% respectively) women. All racial groups exhibited the different sub-types of acne equally, while inflammatory acne was more prevalent in Asian women and comedonal acne was more common in Caucasian women. Post-inflammatory hyperpigmentation (PIH) was more common in African American and Hispanic women (65%, 48% respectively) than in Asian, Continental Indian, and Caucasian (18%, 10%, 25% respectively) women. Skin discoloration and scarring were more common in African American and Hispanic women than in all other ethnic and racial groups.
The results of this study concluded that acne prevalence and complications were more common in those with darker (Fitzgerald types III, IV, V) skin types suggesting that acne is a condition effecting a wider range of ethnic and racial types than previously thought.
By: Dr Gary I Weinberger
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