Four Effective Acne Scar Treatments

If you’ve ever suffered from acne, you know how frustrating this condition can be. Plus, certain types of acne lesions can leave disfiguring scars behind after the outbreak clears. If you’ve been left with scarring due to acne, you’ll be pleased to learn that there are a variety of treatment options available to eliminate the scars of acne and give your skin a smoother, healthier appearance.

The majority of people who develop significant scarring from acne lesions have a more severe form of acne called cystic acne. Cystic acne sufferers are more likely to develop inflammatory lesions in the form of nodules or cysts that become infected and inflamed. When these unsightly lesions finally resolve, they can leave behind a scar which can be permanent unless treatment is given. Treatment options available to treat acne scarring include:

Chemical peeling

An acidic solution is applied to the surface of acne scarred skin causing peeling of the outer skin layers. This allows the new, healthy underlying skin to be revealed. There are different levels of peel depth available depending upon how severe your acne scarring is. Because some of the lighter peels are so superficial, there is almost no recovery time with these procedures. These peels may not be effective for removal of deeper acne scars due to their superficial nature. The medium to deeper depth peels may be more effective in removing acne scars, but results can vary based on the characteristics of the scar. Side effects include redness and swelling, and blistering that lasts up to 14 days before the new, healthy skin is revealed.

Laser resurfacing

This form of treatment removes the acne scarred top layer of the skin using a highly targeted, controlled laser beam. The powerful laser beam essentially vaporizes the old, scarred facial skin, allowing the healthy underlying skin layer to be revealed. This technique for acne scar removal has an advantage in that it can be tightly targeted and controlled to give precise results. Patients undergoing laser resurfacing for acne scar removal can experience up to an 80% improvement in their scarring, although this comes at a price of $5,000 or more.

Dermabrasion

This is a commonly performed procedure that uses a hand held tool to “sand down” areas of the skin that have been damaged by acne scarring. The procedure takes about 1-2 hours to perform and is performed under a local anesthetic. Because you’re essentially removing the top layer of skin, the result is tenderness, redness, and swelling which may last up to 10 days. At this time, you’ll start to see growth of a new layer of healthy skin replace the old, acne scarred skin regions.

Dermatological fillers

Dermatologic fillers are substances injected into acne scars that act to “plump up” the surface of the scar, making the scar appear less noticeable. Some of the fillers approved by the FDA for use on acne scars include bovine collagen, Cymetra, Restylane, Comoderm, Hylaform, and Artecoll. This procedure is usually performed in your doctor’s office and is well tolerated. Unfortunately, the results only last for 3-6 months and then may need to be repeated.

With the new acne scar treatments available today, there’s no need to live with rough, scarred skin. Ask your dermatologist if you’re a candidate for some of these acne scar repair procedures.