Scars are a real bane for many acne victims. Not only you have to deal with pimples, but after they are gone your face is still marred with scars. Talking about enough punishment for one person. In this post we are going to take a brief look at acne scars and the best ways to deal with them.

Types of acne scars

Scars come in many shapes and forms, and each type needs to be dealt with differently. Scars can be divided roughly into two groups:

  • Pigmentation problems
  • Skin tissue problems

 

Scars due to pigmentation problems are often called hyperpigmentation. The spot where the pimple was has excess pigment and is thus colored darker than the surrounding skin. These scars develop because the skin produces too much melanin (protein that gives the skin its color) as a response to inflammation or injury. Such scars are usually smooth and you can’t feel them when you run a finger over the scar.

Scars can also form when collagen is deposited to the wrong places during the healing process. They may be a result of excess deposit of collagen, meaning the scar is higher than the surrounding skin. Or they can result from lack of collagen, meaning the scar is lower than the surrounding area. Of these raised, or keloid, scars are less common.

Dealing with acne scars

So how do you deal with scars?

Good thing is that in many cases scars will fade away on their own. The bad news is that this can take a long time, and in some cases they won’t go away without intervention.

Hyperpigmentation

Topical treatments are the most common way to deal with hyperpigmentation scars. The following are common:

  • Skin brightening creams aim to lighten the skin tone and thus make the scars less visible. Skin whitening creams are a common example of these. They commonly include ingredients such as alpha and beta hydroxy acids, Vitamins A and C and possibly ingredients that exfoliate the skin.
  • Hydroquinone is a treatment that blocks the enzyme that creates melanin and thus lightens the skin. It’s available both over-the-counter and as prescription.
  • Topical retinoids are prescription creams that speed up the turnover of skin cells. This increased turnover rate helps to fade away hyperpigmentation scars faster. However the results still take weeks, if not months, to show. Topical retinoids can also cause dryness, irritation and other side-effects.
  • Glycolic acid exfoliates the skin and lightens the scars
  • Many home remedies, such as honey and various skin care masks are also helpful with hyperpigmentation scars. Look for anti-inflammatory recipes.

Unfortunately none of the above are quick-fixes. So patience is called for.

Tissue problems

Skin tissue problem scars require more serious intervention than hyperpigmentation scars. In most cases these scars require professional intervention and you shouldn’t try to fix these at home. The best option is to talk to your dermatologist who can asses the scars and recommend a best treatment plan. However, the following are common treatment options:

  • Ablative laser treatments aim to resurface the skin by removing outer layers of the skin. They do this by burning the skin in a controlled manner. After the skin heals the scars are visibly reduced. But as you can imagine this causes damage to the skin and can take a few weeks to heal.
  • Non-ablative laser work by stimulating new collagen formation on the skin. Non-ablative lasers are far gentler on the skin than ablative laser are, but they are only suitable for treating keloid (depressed) scars and possibly hyperpigmentation
  • Punch grafting technique involves cutting the whole scar away and filling the whole with a skin patch or ‘graft’. You could think of this technique as punching the skin with a tiny ‘cookie cutter’, you get the idea
  • Skin needling and dermabrasion aim to achieve the same effect as ablative lasers do, but use different methods. Skin needling involves punching through the skin with tiny needles, often using a roller. Dermabrasion uses a rapidly rotating wire brush to achieve this. Like lasers these techniques damage the skin and require local anesthesia.
  • Microdermabrasion is the baby brother of dermabrasion. During this procedure your skin is ‘sandblasted’ with tiny aluminum oxide particles. This ‘blasting’ removes the outer layer of the skin and helps to fade away mild scars. Microdermabrasion is available in many spas and beauty centers.

Prevention is the best cure

Unfortunately perfect treatment for acne scars doesn’t exist. All the above method can help, but none of them can guarantee complete elimination of acne scars. So because there is no cure prevention is the best way to deal with acne scars.

  • Severe, cystic acne leaves scars more often than mild to moderate acne does. You can often reduce the severity of your acne simply by cutting out wheat, dairy, soy and processed vegetable oils from your diet. Often this brings down your acne from severe to mild or moderate.
  • Avoid irritating your skin. Irritation leads to more inflammation on the skin, and thus increases the likelihood of scar formation. Avoid anything that causes redness, burning sensation or itchiness on the skin.
  • Harsh chemicals used in many acne treatments are especially notorious for causing scarring. Switch to products that use milder ingredients.

That’s it for this brief overview of acne scars and how to deal with them. Though there are no guaranteed methods for eliminating acne scars there’s a lot you can do for your skin. You can treat hyperpigmentation with OTC and prescription topical treatments, but more severe scarring requires intervention by dermatologists. Prevention is the best way to deal with acne scars, and by following simple diet and lifestyle guidelines you can cut down the severity of acne and prevent new scarring from happening.

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