Blind pimples can develop when sebum (oil), bacteria, and dirt become trapped deep within a hair follicle. The end result is a painful lump under your skin that doesn't have a “head” as other pimples might have. If you have oily skin, you may be more prone to blind pimples than people with dry skin.
Never squeeze a blind pimple
Blind pimples are usually not positioned near the skin's surface, which means that they cannot be “popped” like whiteheads. Trying to pop a blind pimple can result in permanent scars, a more-noticeable pimple, the pimple becoming more painful, or an infection.
A blind pimple, also known as cystic acne, is a pimple that lives beneath the surface of your skin and doesn't come to a head.
"Known technically as a 'papule', a blind pimple is a superficial raised red lump that occurs when a pore (and its associated sebaceous gland) becomes inflamed," Dr. Squire told marie claire. "These are distinguished from a 'pustule' which is exactly as it sounds (it contains pus and can be squeezed).
The technical term for an acne seed is a microcomedone. A microcomedone is a cluster of mostly dead skin cells that might be mixed with oil and comedogenic ingredients from pore-clogging products. It's called a micro-comedone because when it first forms, it is microscopic so it's invisible to the naked eye.
Milia are tiny, dome-shaped bumps on the skin that contain dead skin cells trapped in small pockets near the skin's surface. In some cases, milia are actually nicknamed “baby acne” or “Epstein pearls" due to their appearance.
“When you push that pus you compress it and it explodes, which leads to more swelling in your face,” says Finkelstein. When you use a warm compress, “it usually comes out by itself.”
These under-the-skin pimples are sometimes called "blind pimples," but their correct term is a cyst or cystic acne. Cysts are painful, annoying, and difficult (but not impossible) to treat.
Blind pimples can develop when sebum (oil), bacteria, and dirt become trapped deep within a hair follicle. The end result is a painful lump under your skin that doesn't have a “head” as other pimples might have. If you have oily skin, you may be more prone to blind pimples than people with dry skin.
The main difference is in the case of a blind pimple; the infection gets trapped deep in the skin next to the nerves, and because there is no “head” on the surface of your skin, pressure can build and causing pain.
Sanitize a needle or pin with rubbing alcohol. Gently prick only the very top of the whitehead with the tip of the needle. Do so on an angle that is parallel to the skin. Don't go so deep that you draw blood.
According to the Education Manager for the International Dermal Institute and Dermalogica, Emma Hobbs, a blind pimple will typically stick around anywhere between five to 10 days.
While it might seem that pimples form overnight, it actually takes between 1 – 2 weeks for an acne spot to fully develop.
The rumor mill might have you believing that dabbing some regular old toothpaste on your zit will help it clear up overnight. But, while it's true that several ingredients found in toothpaste are drying to skin and might help shrink your pimple, this home remedy for breakouts isn't worth the risk.
Don't pop or squeeze pus-filled pimples
You can cause the bacteria to spread and the inflammation to worsen.
Typically, the first approach to treating blind pimples is to try topical medications. Common topical acne medications include: Benzoyl peroxide. This antiseptic that reduces bacteria on the skin.
This means that by touching, prodding, poking, or otherwise irritating pimples, you run the risk of introducing new bacteria to the skin. This can cause the pimple to become even more red, inflamed, or infected. In other words, you'll still have the pimple, rendering any attempts useless.
Instead of popping, try to bring the pimple to a head so it can exit the skin via other treatment methods. Use a product containing benzoyl peroxide. Benzoyl peroxide kills bacteria under the skin. It's a common ingredient in many over-the-counter (OTC) acne treatments and cleansers.
'Sometimes these reoccurring pimples are cystic and come back because they never form a head to be extracted. The pore is clogged under the surface of your skin and can enlarge and appear on the surface of your skin when your body is producing more oil. '
Enilsa Brown, clinical skin care practitioner and owner of Enilsa Skin Essentials and Acne Clinic in Killeen, has been working in the skin care field since 1983. She features her techniques and work on individual clients in YouTube videos, which made her famous in the “pimple popper” community.
A dilated pore of winer is basically an overgrown blackhead that occurs when dead skin cells plug a hair follicle causing keratin to collection. When Dr. Lee removes this patients DPOW (the nickname pop fans have assigned to the bump), she proclaims that it's 'like a rock. '
Those tiny white or yellow bumps under the skin are not worrisome, but they might get frustrating. Milia develop under the skin when bits of dead skin cells, made up of proteins called keratin become trapped and create really hard, little white balls.
The most common procedure for milia removal is de-roofing. Dermatologists use a sterile needle to remove the tiny flap of skin trapping the keratin flake inside the pore. They then squeeze or prick out the flake. A less-common practice is curettage, which is a form of electrosurgery.
Milia don't have an opening onto the skin's surface, which is why they cannot be removed with a simple squeeze or pop. Attempting to pop them can lead to red, inflamed marks or scarring on the skin. Most cases disappear on their own, often lasting a couple of weeks to months.