Acne is experienced by men and women of any age and race. Not only can it be painful and embarrassing, but it can also cause scars once the acne has gone away. The best way to prevent acne scarring is to prevent acne, but once the scars have appeared you do have treatment options so that you do not have to live with acne scars forever. Some people are more prone to develop scars because of heredity and their skin type. There are topical applications that can help to make the appearance of some acne scars less noticeable, but to get the best results it is wise to seek the advice of a dermatologist. A dermatologist can examine your skin and determine the best treatment for your type of acne scars.

 

Types of Acne Scars

Acne scarring can leave dark spots on your skin or you may have raised or depressed scars from the blemishes. All scars are caused by the body’s attempt to heal itself by producing collagen. Acne scars occur deep within the skin in the dermis, the under lying layer of the skin, and not just on the surface of the skin in the epidermis. For this reason these types of scars are sometimes hard to heal and treat. Acne scars are generally categorized into four types.

  1. Ice pick scars are small depressions in the skin. Your skin looks like it has been stuck several times by an ice pick. These types of scars are the most common and usually occur on our face.
  2. Boxcar scars normally occur on the temples or cheeks and look very similar to the scars from chickenpox. This type of a scar has a well defined edge and leaves a depression in the skin.
  3. Rolling scars are shallow and normally occur on your face. The underlying tissue of the skin is damaged and it gives your skin a wave like appearance.
  4. Keloid and hypertrophic scars are both raised from the skin, but keloid scars grow beyond the original site of damage and can become much larger than the original area of damage. Keloid scars may itch and feel firm and rubbery to the touch. Hypertrophic scars may fade over time, but keloid scars rarely fade or go away without treatment. 

It is important to go to a dermatologist so that he can examine your skin and diagnose which type of acne scarring you have and what treatment your skin will respond to the best.

 

Acne Scar Treatments

While it is very difficult and sometimes impossible to return your skin to its normal appearance, there are some very effective acne scar treatments available today. The treatment your doctor recommends will depend on your type of scar and the sensitivity of your skin. Depressed acne scars, scars that cause a depression in your skin, and raised scars require different types of treatment. Most treatments are done in the dermatologist office under local anesthesia. Recovery time is fairly short, usually no more than 2 weeks depending on the method used to treat your scars.

 

Depressed acnes scarring can be treated with surgery, injections, microdermabrasion if the scars are small and dermabrasion. Raised acne scars are treated with a combination of therapies which include surgery, cryotherapy, injections, tapes, creams and gels. Radiation therapy has also been proven to help reduce the appearance and reoccurrence of keloids less than five months old. Your dermatologist will determine which treatment or combination of treatment is best for you type of skin and acnes scarring. There are several treatment options today that can help to reduce and remove acne scars and give you smoother skin.