Active Acne: Treating the Cause, Not Just the Breakout
Acne is driven by sebum production, follicular congestion, bacterial load, and inflammation. Clearing it requires addressing all four — not just the most visible symptom.
get startedAcne is driven by sebum production, follicular congestion, bacterial load, and inflammation. Clearing it requires addressing all four — not just the most visible symptom.
get startedActive acne is a chronic inflammatory skin condition affecting the pilosebaceous unit — the hair follicle and attached sebaceous gland. It presents on a spectrum from non-inflammatory comedones to severe nodulocystic lesions. It's driven by hormonal influence on sebum production, abnormal follicular cell shedding, bacterial colonization, and an inflammatory response that can cause lasting structural damage to the dermis when severe.
Patients come in when acne has persisted despite their own attempts to address it, or when it's significantly affecting their confidence or quality of life. The sooner active acne is treated properly, the smaller the risk of the permanent scarring that makes the concern much more difficult to address.
Acne develops from four processes occurring simultaneously in and around the hair follicle.
Excess sebum production: Androgens stimulate the sebaceous glands to produce more oil than the follicle can clear. This creates the environment in which the other three factors take hold.
Abnormal follicular keratinization: Dead skin cells inside the follicle don't shed normally — they accumulate and combine with sebum to form the plug that becomes a comedone.
C. acnes colonization: C. acnes bacteria thrive in the anaerobic, sebum-rich environment of the plugged follicle and produce byproducts that trigger the inflammatory response.
Inflammation: The immune response to C. acnes byproducts produces the redness, swelling, and pain of inflammatory acne. When the inflammatory response is severe or deep, it destroys collagen — producing the scarring that persists after the acne itself resolves.
Active acne patients typically present with some combination of:
Acne in adolescence is primarily androgen-driven as hormone levels surge. For many patients it resolves or significantly improves in the early 20s as hormone levels stabilize. For a significant subset — particularly women — acne persists into adulthood or recurs in the 30s and 40s as hormonal fluctuation continues through the menstrual cycle and perimenopause.
Adult acne tends to present differently than adolescent acne: more concentrated along the jawline and lower face, often more cystic, and more directly tied to hormonal fluctuation rather than the diffuse sebaceous overactivity of adolescent acne.
Effective acne treatment requires addressing all drivers simultaneously.
At CAMI, acne treatment starts with identifying the type. Comedonal acne, inflammatory acne, cystic acne, and hormonal acne each have different drivers and different protocols. A 26-year-old with hormonal cystic acne along the jawline needs a fundamentally different treatment plan than a 16-year-old with mixed comedonal and inflammatory acne across the T-zone.
We build the protocol around the cause. We set realistic expectations. And we address scarring prevention proactively — because the time to prevent acne scars is during active acne, not after.
Care guided by experience, precision, and a deep understanding of natural beauty.
get started
I'm blown away with my Dysport experience with Madison. She is very knowledgeable, professional and meticulous.
Meredith is the absolutely best!! She is so sweet and her work is perfection! Always an amazing experience at CAMI! Highly recommend.
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I have been coming to CAMI for 5 to 6 years now and their service is bar none! I’m always exceptionally pleased with my results, as I rotate Botox and Xenomin. The staff are very friendly and I always make me feel right at home!
I can’t say enough about the entire team at CAMI and overall experience as a new patient. My concerns were addressed and at no point did I feel rushed or pressured to make a decision. Katie and the entire staff put me at ease. My results are amazing and have made me feel so much more confident. Thank you CAMI! Highly recommend!
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Ashley at CAMI has been amazing. She made me feel comfortable before, during and after my treatments and helped me feel more confident in my appearance
I saw Madison for my Botox appointment and she was the best! She listened to my concerns and I’m very pleased with the results. She also recommended some great skincare products! Can’t recommend this office enough!
I had a wonderful experience with Madison Mikolajczyk,. From the very beginning, she explained everything about my face in detail and with such professionalism that I immediately felt comfortable. I truly appreciated her honesty in telling me exactly what I needed and what would work best for my features. She performed my filler injections using the cannula method and normal injections which left me with beautiful, natural-looking results—and no bruising at all. No one can do that using that method with no bruising. The entire process was completely painless, as she took her time and worked so gently.I couldn’t be happier with the outcome. My results are subtle, natural, and exactly what I hoped for. I’m truly in love with the way my face looks now and would highly recommend her to anyone seeking safe, professional, and natural enhancements. I did Sculptra, Botox and Radiesse filler looking forward for more.
I’ve had nothing but a great experience at CAMI! Ashley is amazing at what she does, as someone who has never gotten any kind of injections before, she was very knowledgeable explaining everything to you beforehand, and will make you feel as comfortable and confident as possible!
I have been very happy with my services over the past few months. Meredith is so sweet and always makes my time there very comfortable. She is patient with me and never pushes me into anything I’m not comfortable with regarding my skin.
I love visiting the CAMI location in Huntersville! They treat everyone special and I left feeling refreshed and uplifted. It was my first time meeting Katie, and she was spectacular! She spent time addressing my needs and concerns and I will definitely request an appointment with Katie again. Thank you CAMI!!
Very personable fun atmosphere and relaxing. Normally I go to California for my facials but I feel very good going to CAMI in Huntersville for my beauty needs.
Easy to schedule consult and treatments! Wonderful welcoming staff at CAMI who make you feel relaxed and excited to be there. Will continue to choose CAMI for all cosmetic needs and recommend to everyone!
This is a great place to come for any facial treatments, fillers, etc. The staff is excellent and I felt totally pampered.
The team is awesome. The staff takes great care of me. I would highly recommend CAMI.
The team was amazing. This was my 1st time getting Botox. They were very thorough and informative. They made the experience easy.
Their team is highly skilled and very good at what they do. I have never had any type of facial treatments before and decided it was time for a little pick-me-up. They took the time to listen to my concerns and recommended the procedure that was best suited for the outcome I was wanting.
Ashley is fantastic! Professional, friendly, and extremely knowledgeable. She’s my go-to for all my skincare maintenance needs. I always leave feeling confident and refreshed!
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I was honestly skeptical about trying CAMI since I hadn’t had the best experiences with Botox and other treatments elsewhere. But choosing CAMI turned out to be one of the best decisions I’ve made. Madison, in particular, is the best nurse and injector I’ve ever worked with—she’s honest, genuinely cares about your results, and makes you feel like her top priority. While the treatments are an investment, as we age a little extra care and attention truly go a long way.
I Love CAMI, and all there staff! Katie Wilson is the absolute Beauty Making Queen!!! 👑 She is very particular when she was doing what I asked of and the results are perfection. I have recommended CAMI to multiple people and they are just as please. Thank you CAMI
I’m so glad I gave this med spa another chance. Everything feels completely different now in the best way. I had a hydrafacial and hydr with Meredith and noticed an immediate improvement in my skin. I went back and purchased a microneedling package, and the results have been good so far. Meredith truly made my experience there so much better. She made me feel comfortable, welcomed, and kept me laughing the entire time. She is also very honest, which I really appreciate. I’ve finally found my person, and I won’t let anyone else touch my face. Highly recommend!
