Milia are the pesky white tiny bumps that can arise right under the skin surface. They especially like the areas around the eyes, but can occur on any part of the body. Sometimes patients are confused and think these are whiteheads or closed comedones, but in fact they are a miniscule cyst which can poked and prodded from skin using a sterile needle, preferably in the hands of a dermatologist. The good news is that these milia are not dangerous at all. However, patients tend to not want to keep their milia, since they arise randomly.
Patients also ask me whether they can apply something topically to their skin to prevent milia from occurring, or whether something they have applied to their skin could have caused the milia. Unfortunately, there is nothing that can be applied topically which has been shown to prevent or treat milia formation.