Tanda. Claro. Zeno. No, these aren't the names of galactic overlords -- they're just some of the light- and heat-emitting, at-home devices that have been released in the past handful of years to treat acne.

While many of the manufacturers behind these devices have conducted small studies to support their products' effectiveness, none of the derms we interviewed were willing to go to bat for them.

"I am not very familiar with these types of machines, but they are not the most effective," Goldfaden says. "There are many more effective ways to manage and treat acne."

Your Rx: Experts seem to agree that these devices may calm a pimple in the same way a compress soaked in hot water would -- they just happen to cost a few hundo. (In other words, your hot washcloth trick gets the thumbs-up.)

It's the closest thing we have to a cure for acne: isotretinoin, or Accutane in its name-brand form, which leaves 85 percent of acne sufferers with clear skin after one course of treatment. In addition to drastically reducing oil secretion, this concentrated form of vitamin A unclogs pores, reduces bacteria levels and relieves inflammation.

Isotretinoin's reputation for causing birth defects has dramatically tightened regulations, and it's been linked to clinical depression and inflammatory bowel disease, but the medical community hasn't been able to prove the latter two connections.

Your Rx: Despite the risks, Tanzi and Frank agree that isotretinoin is a near-miracle worker for patients with moderate to severe acne that hasn't responded to over-the-counter products or prescription antibiotics.

Acne is a bummer, whether it amounts to the occasional red honker in the middle of your chin or chronic breakouts. What's an even bigger bummer is that acne and depression are scientifically linked -- and can make each other worse, creating a vicious cycle of low self-esteem, according to a study by the University of California San Francisco.

Not only are people with acne are at a higher risk for depression (so says a Swedish study), it's also possible that depression makes acne worse. After all, stress causes excess sebum production, and being depressed is superstressful.

Your Rx: If you focus on getting happy, your face may get happier, too. If acne has lowered your self-esteem or made you extra-moody, think about trying talk therapy to recalibrate your perceptions or yourself. Your doctor or dermatologist may even prescribe antidepressants, which can lift your mood, reduce stress and quell habits that could be making your acne worse, like skin-picking.

If your pimples have ever turned into keloids, well ... you'd know it. Keloids are bumpy, raised scars that occur when inflammation signals your skin to regenerate scar tissue -- too much scar tissue, in fact. It's a hereditary condition that's also more common in certain ethnicities.

Your Rx: There are lots of in-office procedures to combat keloids, but early treatment is key -- the longer you wait, the worse they might get. If you have keloid acne scars, talk to your doc ASAP.

Along with lasers, light treatments are one of the futuristic procedures your derm may recommend for your acne.

One is photodynamic therapy. "In photodynamic therapy, a light-activated drug called amino-levulinic acid is used in conjunction with a laser to destroy sebaceous glands that are producing too much oil," explains Peredo.

Another hot treatment is Isolaz. "It is the only system that purifies and literally drains your pores from the inside and combines vacuum and laser to help destroy acne-causing bacteria," Frank says.

Your Rx: If topical or oral medications haven't helped your acne and you've got the cash (or an insanely generous health insurance plan), look into light therapies.