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Acne Scars

Improve Your Skin by Stimulating Your Body’s Natural Healing Process

It’s Time To Leave Your Teen Years, And Acne Scars, Behind You.

Everyone knows that some degree of acne is a normal part of growing up. However, up to 55% of people get scarring due to acne. In other words, 1 in 2 people will leave high school with mild to severe acne scars. As we age, acne scars often become more visible due to collagen loss in our skin. Scars, especially facial scars, cause self-consciousness and embarrassment for many people. While rare, severe acne scarring has been linked to depression and even suicide.

Causes Of Acne Scars

As any other type of scars, acne scars are a result of injury to the skin and a faulty healing process. Acne scars are most often found on the face, back, and chest.

Scars most often occur in those with inflammatory acne. Usually, if the inflammation is intense (redness, pain, pus), the risk of scarring is higher.

Inflammation occurs when the skin’s pores or follicles become engorged with dead skin, bacteria, and excess oil. This causes the pore to swell and break the follicle wall. If the break is near the skin’s surface, the healing process is usually quick and effective (unless, of course, scabs are damaged). If, however, the rupture is deeper, the lesion will be more serious, as the infected substance will spill out into the dermis and damage the surrounding healthy tissue.

Other causes of acne scars include:

Non-Treatment: Ignoring even mild acne will increase the risks of inflammatory acne and, therefore, the risks of acne scarring.

Genetics: Genes play a large role in the development of scars. Some people with severe inflammatory acne will not develop scars, while others with more moderate, or even mild acne, will.

Picking and damaging scabs: Picking at scabs and acne causes further trauma to the skin and increases the chances of scarring.

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Types Of Acne Scars

Different types of trauma to the skin’s tissues will cause different types of scars. Determining the type of acne scars that are on your skin, will help determine the best way to treat them.

Depressed Or Atrophic Scars

Most people (80 to 90 percent) who have acne scars have depressed acne scars. These are depressions or pits that form as the skin heals. Atrophic scars are caused by a lack of collagen during the healing process. As a result, the surface of the skin is left with a hole-like scar.

Three types of depressed scars can occur on the skin.

Boxcar scars: Broad depressions with steep, defined edges. Boxcar scars are wide, and can be deep or shallow.

Ice-pick scars: Ice-pick scars are considered more severe than other atrophic scars as they are deep and narrow. They are also more visible to the naked-eye.

Rolling scars: Caused by damage under the skin’s surface, these types of scars are wide and shallow. With rolling scars, the skin appears to be wavelike.

Raised Or Hypertrophic Scars

Raised or hypertrophic scars are generally pink and thick raised lumps that occur when too much collagen is deposited by the body during the healing process. Raised scars are actually a result of over-healing.

In some cases, raised scars may itch or hurt.

Keloid Scars

Although quite uncommon, keloid scars can be caused by acne. A keloid is a thick, overgrown scar that rises above the skin. Its shape is often irregular and extends beyond the initial wound boundaries. They are the result of an excessive healing response to a wound. The risks of developing keloids are often linked to genetics.

F.A.Q.

How Can I Prevent Acne Scars?

The best way to prevent scarring is keeping your acne under control. Treating acne will reduce the inflammation and potential risks of scarring. Avoid picking and touching your scabs, as well as squeezing your pimples, to reduce ruptures in the skin and further tissue injuries.

What Treatment Is Best For Me?

Treatment options depend on the patient’s condition, lifestyle and overall needs. Our specialized team will be able to recommend a personalized treatment program that will best suit you.

How Long Will The Results Last?

How long will the results last?

Results vary on the type of treatment, as well as the patient’s skin type, lifestyle, and overall health.

Are Treatments Safe?

At Elna Esthetics, we aim to offer the most effective and innovative non-surgical cosmetic treatments to our patients. With our patients’ safety in mind, we ensure that our equipment is of the highest quality and our team is highly trained. Nevertheless, any treatment may still come with potential risks. We will provide you with complete information about possible treatment risks.

Acne Scars Treatment Options

Home remedies rarely treat acne scars. To better improve the appearance of acne scarring, it is recommended to consult a specialist who will assess your condition, and provide effective treatment according to each scar type.

Our specialized team can recommend the best possible solution that will suit your unique condition and desired effects.

Below are some of our popular treatment options for acne scars.

To find-out which treatment could be right for you, book an appointment today.