People with acne are at substantially higher risk for depression in the first years after the condition appears, a new study reports.

Researchers used a British database of 134,427 men and women with acne and 1,731,608 without and followed them for 15 years. Most were under 19 at the start of the study, though they ranged in age from 7 to 50. The study is in the British Journal of Dermatology.

Over the 15-year study period, the probability of developing major depression was 18.5 percent among patients with acne and 12 percent in those without.

People with acne were more likely to be female, younger, nonsmokers and of higher socioeconomic status. They were also less likely to use alcohol or be obese.