Deep blackhead on DS's forehead. Ideas for removal

[sunshinechaser]

My DS is 14 and has started getting bumpy, slightly spotty skin as he's going through puberty. He had a raised bump on his forehead which has now fallen off but it's left a really deep black mark that I presume is a blackhead. He's a bit self conscious about it so I wondered if anyone had recommendations for skincare for teens that might help.
He currently uses Cerave blemish face wash that contains salicylic acid and niacinamide and applies salicylic acid lotion twice daily. This usually keeps his skin in good condition but not sure how long this will continue to work as his skin gets spottier with age.

I don't know if this would help for your DS, but I used to have very oily skin and I found taking a complete Vitamin B calmed it right down. I think I found the advice online, so Google may have more info.

You can get warts and veruccas on the face or any skin, both caused by HPV -if something fell off first leaving it then I'd be erring on the side of caution before squeezing.

Perhaps a pharmacist visit before you Bazuka his face to get confirmation one way or the other.

No wonder we can't get appointments.

A GP is a consultant grade physician, the same grade as a heart surgeon.

Go to the pharmacy.

I pull my blackheads out sometimes, I get some in the crease of my nose and you can't get to them otherwise, hot towel first, then if you give it a gentle squeeze you can see the end of it poking up, just grab it with a pair of tweezers and they pull out, you can get these tweezers with curved end that can grab better and not poke or stab.

I'm not going to lie.. it's awesome.

It was obvious, I said "would be" which is referring to something theoretical that has not taken place! Smh.

My daughter had one on her cheek - we used la Roche posay toner (blue one?) for a few weeks and it eventually dried up and sort of fell out. I don’t think it’s good for long term use on a large area but could work on an individual.

Just squeeze it. Literally nothing bad will happen or 99% of us would know about it. Why hasn’t he squeezed it himself?

A verruca is just a wart that happens to be on your foot, sometimes called a plantar wart, plantar being the medical word referring to the sole of the foot (I used to think it was because it was "planted" in your foot!).

I'm not sure why they get a different name in English. In French a wart is "une verrue" (you can see the common origin with verruca!) and a verruca is "une verrue plantaire". So English ended up with a Latin-derived name for the ones on your feet and a Germanic-derived name for all the others.

If it is a wart then you shouldn't be squeezing it, if in doubt get a medical opinion. The pharmacist can do this, no need to trouble your GP.

Agree, yesterday I was on hold to my gp for 15 mins before it disconnected , rang back , this time I had the option of 'you're placed in a queue press one & we will call you back" I was number 86, the call back took over an hour to speak to a receptionist, took another 45 mins to speak to a dr whilst I was having an adverse reaction to my new meds

A GP is a consultant grade physician, the same grade as a heart surgeon.

What grade is that? Not come across many heart surgeons working as GPs.

Consultant grade.

Magnesium sulphate paste! Will draw it out

😁

Lots of spas and salons offer teen facials - see if there is a good one near you that will do an ‘extraction’ - they’ll have tools and expertise to avoid scarring.

Totally disagree. It could leave a scar. Go to GP. Or maybe a salon that would do a cleansing facial

Acne is for Consultant Dermatologists to deal with. Pharmacists cannot do anything.

@Nellynoo182 there is some weird shortage (or discontinued?) ,used to be readily available pharmacy Amazon etc but it's just vanished

I absolutely would take a sterile needle to a black head!

I am a pharmacist (hospital ICU pharmacist albeit so definitely no expert in acne) and agree pharmacists are not that much help with acne products. I'm aware of the next steps my DS needs in terms of topical preps if his skin deteriorates as per NICE guidelines and will have no hesitation making sure he gets started on these if needed.
He's not back from school yet so I can't take a photo but I actually don't think it would show up that well in a photo anyway.
As far as I'm aware magnesium sulphate paste isn't recommended anymore and is probably discontinued.

Actually I strongly disagree with you.

i don’t think anyone would go to see a doctor with one spot or blackhead. BUT anyone with even mild acne should get medical advice. Our skin is one of the most important organs in our body and people should seek medical advice rather than waisting their money on expensive beauty potions.

My son had a huge one on his nose that wasn't in a squeezable place, he used acnecide face wash and eventually was able to scrape it out. It's kept it away and the smaller blackheads too.

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Acnecide-Treatment-Percent-Peroxide-Blackheads/dp/B089QR2HR6/ref=mp_s_a_1_3_pp?adgrpid=116565745646&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.8CViIntNKutBj-xeXE2EkmRtIZLEqt0WQctHaLG27BaG_jTTrEVaAdWA0wld1pdFPhcGr8aK9Uh4meqqrK7ny33ucHyxEfpGZ44kKRMTNfCCo5L5NjmzR9rqNYRKJ9kv8-ZIjxhL9dkjIT42bA7bcqsE_CCzIemnPoMegt0kG0r3m2usIhCmd5fa7k6CUcHy9Tk_evvlO7e4C2iXESJU0Q.SMm4n4UmhM5Dfnikrj-PzPv5ISiF6OrO19Qo7E6skz8&dib_tag=se&hvadid=498491954771&hvdev=m&hvlocphy=1006886&hvnetw=g&hvqmt=e&hvrand=10721331452433680879&hvtargid=kwd-314345841993&hydadcr=7433_1810710&keywords=acnecide&nsdOptOutParam=true&qid=1732727287&sr=8-3

Yes, and you have to go to GP to get a referral. It isn't the fault of someone who believes they need an appointment for an acne type issue they are worried about (not the OP atm on her son's behalf, I understand, which is positive) that someone else is in a queue to get a GP appointment. Be kind.

Ds uses "spot dots", wash and dry face, whack one of these on, pull it off in the morning and the grossness comes too.

@sunshinechaser if you do go down the route of acnecide or similar ( excessive in my opinion for a blackhead) be aware the cream will bleach anything it touches ( bedding towels etc)

There is a good blackhead extraction tool that Tweezerman produce and it explains on their website how to use it.

https://www.tweezerman.co.uk/how-to/how-to-remove-blackheads-with-a-blackhead-extractor/?gad_source=1&gbraid=0AAAAACp3UI8Nj86hpq2tV-T1EO_c52-Du

Quick Google shows it’s on sale at Look Fantastic at the moment. I’d recommend trying out of the shower, and obviously a sterilised tool much better than fingers/fingernails.