Pock Marked No More: Acne Scarring Treatments

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Everyone hates acne… and everyone hates acne scars even more. There can be nothing worse than your breakout clearing up – only to find scars leaving permanent reminders. Even when you resist the temptation to pick and squeeze you pimples, there is still a good chance they will scar.
 
Cause and Effect
The inflammation caused by acne damages the skins collagen reserves. Even without picking, this creates the environment for scarring. The great news is that treatments for scars have come a long way – and you no longer need to be affected by this skin condition.
 
What do your acne scars look like?
The type of acne scar will play a massive role in your treatment option. So too will the quality of your skin, the colour of your skin and the training experience of your doctor.
 
Acne scars can be categorised into three different appearances:
 
1. Shallow atrophic scars
2. Boxcar shaped
3. Ice-pick shaped (Narrow and deep)
 
Other factors that may influence how visible your scars are include redness or darkening of the scars.
 
What are your acne scarring treatment options?
Treatments in scarring have evolved to include a number of options, and an experienced doctor will be able to treat your skin with specific protocols that suit your specific needs.
 
In most cases you will require some combination treatments over a service of weeks, and they almost all begin with a good homecare range.
 
Homecare
As mentioned before, stopping the inflammatory response will lessen the risk of scarring. Should you already suffer from acne scarring; the correct use of anti-inflammatory creams will reduce their visibility – while allowing for greater accuracy when treating the scar itself.
 
A prescribed homecare range can lessen the pigmentation of the scar and reduce visibility – however they can do nothing to remove the scar itself. For that you have a number of options. These are the options that I use at my practice.

 

Botox®
Although Botox® is not a traditional treatment option for skin depression (as is the case with acne scars), more and more treatments are being done to lessen the visibility of these scars by utilising the muscle inhibitor action.
 
This lessens the pull on atrophic scars. When used in conjunction with dermal fillers, Botox® can be an effective scar treatment option.
 
The Botox treatment eases pressure on the scar by relaxing the muscles beneath it, but it will not be able to fill the pock mark – hence the dermal filler.
 
Dermal Fillers
Dermal fillers are fast becoming the norm when treating difficult acne scars. This is because good dermal fillers act on two fronts:
 
First: Dermal fillers are made from hyaluronic acid. This means you are injecting a natural skin volumising molecule. By thickening the skin, you will lessen the visibility of the acne scar throughout the skin as a whole.
 
Second: Dermal fillers can be injected directly beneath a scar and “filled from the inside out”. This means that deep scars can be treated by placing dermal fillers directly below the acne scar, which softens them from view.
 
Again, this is a great combination procedure to use in conjunction with Botulinum toxin, chemical peels or mesotherapy. The results are temporary, but there is little or no downtime with this procedure. Most patients combine their treatments with additional aesthetic medicine.
 
Chemical Peels
Chemical peels have developed a rough reputation due to the downtime associated with the treatment. But as with all things in aesthetic medicine, the procedure has evolved and now we as doctors have choices… and so do you.
 
Chemical peels are an extremely effective acne scar treatment option. They have been for some time, but the ability to mix chemicals at various concentrations now means that we can treat individual scars in individual people.
 
The process of chemical peeling basically involves forced exfoliation of the skin. The peel is applied to exfoliate the outer layers of scarred skin. This is then replaced by non-scarred, new skin from the skin layers beneath. You will need to undergo a few treatments to achieve your desired result – but chemical peeling offers high patient satisfaction rates at very affordable prices.
 
Combining chemical peels with dermal filler injections is a personal favourite of mine – and where I can, I recommend this treatment option.

 

Mesotherapy
Mesotherapy is a technique whereby vitamins and minerals are injected into the mesoderm layer in the skin. The treatment is a skin rejuvenation treatment by nature. This means that if it’s done correctly, it can reduce the visibility of acne scars by volumising the skin.
 
However this is not a favourite technique of mine for treating acne scarring – but as it is the most cost-effective method, I have included it.
 
As with all treatments for acne scarring, there are associated risks and skin prerequisites before we can go ahead with treatments. Always discuss your options and desired outcomes with your doctor, and always work with the most qualified doctor you can find.
 

Remember, you have a budget and need to work within you limits as acne scar treatments are not covered by medical aid. Yet you can nonetheless achieve fantastic results by working with experienced physicians.

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About Author

Dr. Martina v.d. Mescht M.B.Ch.B(UOVS) TMCC has over 20 years’ experience in the medical profession and over 10 years in aesthetic medicine. Based in Roodepoort, Johannesburg, Dr vd Mescht has a special interest in aesthetic and anti-ageing medicine.

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