Acne is not just “dirty pores.” In simple terms, acne starts when a pore gets clogged and forms a plug (a comedone). If that plug stays closed under the skin, it can look like a bump; if it opens, it can look like a blackhead. Inflammatory acne happens when the blocked pore becomes irritated and the surrounding skin reacts—this is when pimples become red, tender, and swollen. Because acne includes both blockage and inflammation, tools that only “pull stuff out” may help the look of a pore for a short time, but they don’t always change the deeper causes that keep new lesions forming.

This is where suction devices (often sold as “blackhead removers”) need a reality check. Suction can remove loose material near the surface in some pores, but research doesn’t show strong clinical evidence that suction alone improves acne over time. In contrast, manual comedone extraction is a known medical technique for certain stubborn clogged pores (especially larger, persistent ones).

One “clinical pearl” describes extraction for persistent large comedones even while on isotretinoin, emphasizing technique and safety in that specific situation. Another paper describes a procedure for larger closed comedones using a controlled opening and extraction approach, with patients tolerating it and rating cosmetic results as very good.

These are not suction devices, but they show an important point: when “removing a clog” is needed, scientific evidence supports controlled extraction techniques more than consumer suction. Suction also has a known practical downside: if the suction is strong or the device is dragged, it can cause irritation and visible redness, and irritation can make acne look worse short-term.

Blue light and red light are different because they aim to change the skin environment, not simply “pull out” material. A clinical trial tested blue light (around 415 nm) and combined blue + red light (around 415 and 660 nm) used daily at home for 12 weeks in mild-to-moderate acne. The combined blue-red group saw a large reduction in inflammatory lesions and also improved comedones, with the combined approach performing better than several comparators at different time points (including white light and benzoyl peroxide in parts of the study).

The proposed logic was that blue light can be more antibacterial while red light can be more calming for inflammation, so combining them may help both sides of acne. Another study reported that a high-intensity narrow-band blue light reduced acne lesions and also reduced acne-related bacteria in lab testing, supporting a plausible mechanism.

However, a meta-analysis pooling blue-light studies concluded that the overall evidence is limited by small, short trials and higher risk of bias, and that pooled results did not show a clear advantage on lesion counts overall—meaning blue light is promising, but not “proven strong” across the board.

For other technologies, a pilot study of a 1450 nm diode laser for inflammatory facial acne reported large reductions in lesion counts across multiple treatments and mainly short-term side effects like temporary redness and swelling, but it did not include a control group. This suggests professional energy-based treatments can help, but the quality of evidence and cost/availability differ from at-home devices.