Treating Acne: A Pharmacological Approach

Overview

Acne is a common dermatological condition that affects most people at some stage in their life. Because acne is regarded as “normal” and over-the-counter products are readily available, most people will not seek treatment from their Primary Care Provider. This course reviews the pathophysiology of acne, it's pharmacological treatment and special precautions to implement while managing the acne patient.

Target Audience

This course is designed for Healthcare providers with prescriptive authority (MD, ARNP, PA) seeking to enhance their knowledge of acne and it's pharmacological treatment.

Objectives

Upon completion of this course, students will be able to:

1. Identify the common nomenclature as it relates to acne vulgaris.
2. Describe the pathophysiology of acne vulgaris.
3. Describe the clinical presentation of acne vulgaris and the physical severity of acne, and differentiate between subjective symptoms and objective signs.
4. Identify diagnostic considerations in the assessment and differential diagnosis of acne vulgaris.
5. Describe general treatment advice for all levels of acne severity as well as pharmacological treatment depending on severity.
6. Explain the efficacy, adverse effects, dosing, contraindications, patient selection, monitoring and patient education before and during treatment of severe acne using Isotretinoin.

Completion Requirements

In order to receive full contact-hour credit for this CE activity, participants must:

1. Be registered for this activity,
2. Review the course material,
3. Complete the course post-test and obtain a grade of 70% or higher,
4. Complete and submit the course evaluation survey.
5. Other requirements for some of the courses may also include participation discussion boards, practice exercises, practice questions, etc.

Conflict of Interest (or lack thereof) for Planners, Authors and Presenters.

A conflict of interest exists if any individual/entity that is in a position to influence the content, design, or implementation of the CNE activity is ALSO in a position to benefit financially from the success of a CE activity.

The planners, authors and presenters of this CNE activity have disclosed no conflict of interest including no relevant financial relationships with any commercial companies pertaining to this CNE activity.

Commercial/Sponsor Support.

There is no commercial company or sponsor support for this CE activity.

Non-Endorsement of Products.

The CE provider approval status refers only to continuing nursing education activities and does not imply that there is a real or implied endorsement of any product, service, or company referred to in this activity nor of any company subsidizing costs related to the activity.

Off-Label Product Use.

This CE activity does not include any unannounced information about off-label use of a product for a purpose other than that for which it was approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA).

Course Aprrovals

Nursing Board Approvals National Healthcare Institute (NHI) is an approved provider of continuing nursing education by the Florida and District of Columbia Board of Nursing. All CE courses offer by National Healthcare Institute follow the standards recommended by the American Nurses Credentialing Center’s Commission on Accreditation for this type of educational activities.

Florida Board of Nursing

Registered Nurse

Clinical Nurse Specialist

Advanced Registered Nurse Practitioner

District of Columbia Board of Nursing

Registered Nurse

Registered Nurse Anesthetist

Clinical Nurse Specialist

Clinical Nurse Midwife

Advanced Registered Nurse Practitioner