How to Get Rid of Acne Scars - 8 Routes to Consider

How to Get Rid of Acne Scars - 8 Routes to Consider by Justine van Zyl

It's a question asked every year by thousands of people - "How do I get rid of Acne Scars?"

The best answer, of course, is to catch the acne early and eliminate or at least minimize the damage.

If it's too late for that, however, then the answers to that "How do I get rid of Acne Scars?" question get a little bit better and the prospects a little more hopeful every year as techniques and drugs improve.

There are lots of avenues to explore. The route you take will be influenced by the severity of the scarring, how much you can afford, and the end result you want to achieve.

Depending on your particular circumstances, there can be at least 8 ways to seriously consider. These 8 fall into two broad categories:

Specialist treatment of some sort, most likely by a dermatologist; or

Non-surgical treatment, which includes creams, UV sun lamps and a large number of home and non-traditional remedies.


If you're considering the surgical route, remember that you cannot undertake any treatment if your acne is still active, or in fact, if you are suffering from any other active disease.
Let's start with the options from the specialists. Dermatologists offer the following treatments for acne scar removal, frequently using a number of techniques in combination.

Laser

Also called laser resurfacing, this is probably the most popular method nowadays. In practice, the doctor removes the top layer of the skin, the damaged one, and tightens up the next layer. Your face will take between 3 and 10 days to heal. But the treatment is popular because it lasts and there are minimal recurring problem areas.

A new specialist laser treatment has just (March 2006) been approved by the Food & Drug Administration. It involves using the Fraxel Laser, which delivers thousands of tiny dots of laser energy to the skin being treated, but leaves the area around each dot untouched. The result is much quicker healing because the skin is not raw, and there is little chance of scarring or infection.

Laser treatment is not recommended if you have a dark skin, as there is a substantial risk of changed pigmentation, which could look unsightly.

Dermabrasion

Dermatologists use a high-speed brush or spinning diamond tool to wear down the surface of the skin and change scar contours (under anesthetic, you'll be glad to hear!). Recovery takes longer - anything up to three weeks.

A related technique, microdermabrasion, uses aluminum oxide crystals to remove the very top skin cells. Obviously this technique can only be used for very light scars, but it is a gentler process and no new wounds are created.

Chemical peels

Often used with more severe scarring, doctors normally start with a weaker solution and then gradually increase the strength. The treatment can take anything up to four months.

Excision

This word covers a number of techniques. In Punch Excision, the scar is cut out by a kind of "cookie cutter" and the edges sewn together. The new scar eventually fades and should be less noticeable. Even if it is not, it can now be further treated with one of the resurfacing techniques.

In Punch Excision and Skin Graft, the hole left by the cutter is filled with a skin graft, often taken from behind the ear. There's another "punch" to consider - Punch Elevation. In this technique, used to treat deep scars, the base of the scar is cut free and then raised up to the surface of the rest of the skin.

Dermal Fillers

These are injected into acne scars, to lift the surface and make it look smoother. Fillers can include human or bovine collagen, while sometimes your own fat is transplanted from somewhere else in your body. Unfortunately, the effect of these fillers is not permanent, and the process has to be repeated from time to time.

Obviously these are very simple explanations, and it is absolutely essential to obtain skilled professional advice before considering any of these treatments. Dermatologists will be able to advise you on the pros and cons of the steps you might be contemplating.

None of these procedures make particularly fun reading, so perhaps you could consider one of what might be loosely called the "non-surgical" approaches, which are particularly appropriate if the scarring is superficial.

If your problem is what is called a pigment scar (a sort of purple brown mark left once the acne has healed), you could consider bleaching creams, which are available in various strengths. You'll need to wait at least two months to see whether the process is working or not.

If not, your doctor might prescribe a retinoid cream, probably with a stronger bleaching cream. If you manage to catch the scarring early, over the counter treatments worth considering include vitamin E, coca butter or a product called Mederma, which is a gel that has been used to soften and reduce the appearance of surgical scars.

UV sun lamps sometimes help, as does Aloe Vera.

But remember - if you want to avoid having to choose from among all these options, prevention is much, much better than cure, so act as early as you can.

About the Author
Justine writes for a number of websites. For more information on catching and solving acne problems early, visit www.theinfograpevine.com/AcneAnswers.html

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