How To Remove Acne Scars Permanently, According to Experts
Acne is a common nightmare for primarily teenagers and even young adults across the globe. But worse and even more challenging to bear concern for anyone is having unsightly acne scars after acne clearance.
Acne scars are the pesky reminders of having severe acne breakouts. When acne is deep-seated, causes permanent damage to the skin, and does not heal appropriately with proper collagen production, it can leave behind scars.
Acne scars can be raised or sunken in appearance. No one likes to have visible scars. Thankfully, a dermatologist in Ludhiana, Dr. Shikha Aggarwal at Bliss Laser Skin Clinic, can best address this concern and help mask or minimise their appearance on the skin surface with professional cosmetic procedures. In this blog, you can explore permanent acne scar removal treatments. However, before knowing about them, it is important to understand the type and causes of acne scars. Acne scar treatment is decided by a dermatologist based on the acne scar type.
What are the Different Types of Acne Scars?
Acne scars are defined based on how collagen malformation occurs. When collagen production is less than usual during acne healing, depressed or atrophic scars appear. Conversely, raised or hypertrophic acne scars appear if collagen production is more than usual.
The most common type of acne scar is the atrophic acne scar, which is further classified into three types:
- Icepick: These depressed acne scars are narrow, deep, and sharply marginated.
- Boxcar: These are broad, rectangular skin depressions with slanted edges.
- Rolling: These are broadly rounded skin depressions with sloping edges.
Raised acne scars can be hypertrophic or keloid. Keloids develop outside the margins of the injury site by acne breakout and do not regress over time, while hypertrophic scars are contained within the borders of the initial injury and regress over time.
When an individual has post-inflammatory hyperpigmentation, red, white, or dark spots appear on the initial site of the acne breakout. These are not scars since they don’t form scar tissue. Hence, a dermatologist’s help is an effective option for acne scar treatment in Ludhiana. They first diagnose the root cause of acne scars, check for sin types, and provide suitable treatment options to manage them effectively.
What Causes of Acne Scars?
Acne scars result from collagen malformation and discolouration of the injury site due to inflammation or sun damage.
When severe acne breakouts occur, the skin and the tissue beneath get damaged. The body strives to repair the damage as the acne goes away. During the natural healing of the damaged skin, the skin tries restoring its collagen, a protein that supports the skin structure. Scars develop when the body fails to restore normal collagen levels and produces too little or too much collagen.
What are the best treatments for permanent acne scar removal?
Despite the best attempts to avoid acne scars, some people develop them. Luckily, they have several aesthetic acne scar treatment in Ludhiana that resurface and rejuvenate the skin and can even significantly minimise the appearance of depressed and raised acne scars.
There is no single effective therapy for treating acne scars, and they are usually tricky to remove altogether. However, scars can be considerably improved with the proper methods and combinations. Multiple therapy sessions may be required depending on the nature and depth of the injury caused by acne breakout. A dermatologist recommends combining numerous treatments because various acne scars affect different skin layers.
To permanently eliminate textural acne scars, the treatment needs to focus on restructuring collagen in the skin. For some acne scars, malformed collagen needs to be broken down, while for others, increasing collagen levels in the skin to a healthy level is required to achieve smoother skin.
Here are the best acne scar removal options suggested by a dermatologist:
1. Microdermabrasion
Microdermabrasion is a skin-rejuvenation treatment that helps remove acne scars, restore sun-damaged facial skin, and reduce the effects of ageing. In this treatment, a dermatologist sprays tiny abrasive crystals across the scarred skin with a special microdermabrasion device similar to a fine sandblaster. The device combines light abrasion with suction to remove the dead outer layer of skin.
2. RF Microneedling
RF microneedling combines high-intensity, concentrated radiofrequency treatment with traditional microneedling techniques. In this treatment, insulated microneedles are used to micro-puncture the scarred skin and deliver precise energy into the deeper skin layers. The needles of the microneedling RF device provide energy to various layers of the dermis. The heat effect induced in the dermis is considerable, resulting in apparent collagen stimulation and dermal remodelling.
One of the primary benefits of this procedure is that it is safe for all skin types. This procedure tightens and volumizes the dermis to improve its quality, making it suitable for healing acne scars.
3. Dermal fillers
An acne scar treatment doctor in Ludhiana may recommend dermal fillers like hyaluronic acid or collagen-based fillers for severe acne scars that do not respond to other skin resurfacing treatments. Ice-pick scars found deep in the cheeks or chin may not always react to increased collagen production. However, because dermal fillers can improve skin volume in a specific area, they may be an excellent choice for severe acne scars.
3. Laser resurfacing
Laser resurfacing is one of the most effective methods to reduce acne scars, such as ice-pick scars, box scars, crater scars, and rolling scars. Technological advancements in laser therapy have also made lasers helpful in treating hypertrophic scars. Erbium fibre lasers are used to treat superficial to medium-depth scars. This type of laser employs the only-one-pass formula. A fractional CO2 laser helps treat deeper scars. The results of the fractional CO2 laser are superior to those of other lasers.
Laser therapy is delivered through a device that emits specific wavelengths of light. These laser beams tear down scar tissue and promote new collagen formation, significantly reducing acne scars and making the skin smooth and attractive.
Watch this video by our doctor for more details on acne scars treatment by Dr. Shikha Aggarwal
How to Prevent Acne Scars?
First and foremost, stop picking up the pimples. Bacteria can increase the chance of future cyst formation and cause a more prominent scar. Also, dermatologists advise staying out of the sun as overexposure can darken the wounds, making them appear more prominent. They even warn against irritating inflamed skin. Overwashing and scrubbing damaged areas can impair skin suppleness and make scars more visible. The quicker inflammatory acne is treated, the lower the risk of scarring.
The best way to prevent acne scarring is to get medical attention immediately for acne breakouts. Changes in skin texture, in particular, are more challenging to treat, so seek help from a dermatologist. It is preferable to get early treatment for acne by a dermatologist rather than wait for it to heal.
What is the Cost of Acne Scar Treatment?
The acne scar treatment cost in Ludhiana varies from patient to patient. Many factors affect it, like patient skin type, type of scars, skin condition severity, number of sessions and type of treatment provided.
For more details, get in touch with a dermatologist near me.
