How to Get Rid of Acne Scars The Expert Guide
Reviewed by Dr. Ravali Yalamanchili
MBBS- Prathima Medical College
MD-JSS University, Mysore.
Acne Treatment in Hyderabad
Acne Scarring: The Physical and Emotional Impact
Acne scars occur in 95% of all people either suffering with or suffered from acne vulgaris. They are becoming increasingly challenging to treat. Those pimples arising from severely inflamed lesions usually leave permanent scars. These permanent scars induce associations of low self-esteem, psychological pain, and ultimately reduced quality of life.
Also, it must be understood that the intensity of clinical severity cannot be taken as the face value that depicts the accurate measure of the patient’s distress (i.e., mild scarring may result in significant distress), just as the clinical severity of the acne vulgaris may not be correlated to the incidence or severity of scarring.
General dermatologists are frequently presented with acne scarring and asked to counsel patients with regard to their treatment options. As acne scars often worsen over time, many of these patients are beyond the “acne age” of late teens into the early twenties and are middle-aged.
If you’re wondering ‘how to get rid of pimple scars’ or ‘do acne marks go away naturally,’ you’re not alone. At Neya Dermatology and Aesthetics, the best skin care clinic in Hyderabad, we intently listen to the patient. To us the patient is not a set of case papers, to us a patient is a living being with aspirations and adulations. We try to understand the patient’s preference of temporary vs. permanent improvement, their ability to accept risk, the possibility of a prolonged treatment process, the limitations of the patient’s budget, intellect, social circumstances, and work requirements. Only after obtaining all these aspects do we start the acne treatment.
Three types of treatments for three types of acne scars
Most of the acne scars are depressed scars which means the site at which the pimples occur have a sunken or indented appearance after the pimple has gone away. These types of scars occur due to the acne injury that damages the underlying skin tissue during healing. The skin’s inability to produce enough collagen during the healing process leads to the formation of these depressions.
Depending on the morphology (the form, shape and structure) of the scar, acne scars are categorised into three types. They are
● Icepick scars (deeper than wide),
● Boxcar scars (wider than deep with distinct edges), and
● Rolling atrophic scars (these can be smoothed out if stretched).
Punch excision: Each of the scars has its own type of treatment. For icepick scars, the dermatologist may consider surgical options or may perform punch excision to treat.
Laser treatment: In the case of boxcar scars, the treating dermatologist may opt laser treatment – usually a CO2 laser or erbium-YAG laser. The dermatologist first treats individual scars to efface edges and then uses a fractional ablative or nonablative technology for an overall global improvement.
Filler and ablative resurfacing: In the case of rolling atrophic scars which are the most common and are likely caused by inflammatory processes leading to the enzymatic degradation of the collagen fibres and subcutaneous fat, the treatment includes filler and ablative resurfacing. While resurfacing treatment can smoothen out the scar, the dermal filler is necessary to help support it after the energy device treatment. While the initial appearance following resurfacing will be fine, once the undulations start to reform, it must be understood that their smoothness will diminish over time.
This is why choosing the best dermatologist is an important and vital task. Understanding what causes acne scars is crucial for effective treatment. Only an experienced skin clinic can provide the best skin care because they can understand that there are various inflammatory components to acne scars.
Your dermatologist must be able to encounter even the hybrid scars. Hybrid scars are those which have more than one physical characteristic, such as pigmentation or erythema, in addition to being atrophic or hypertrophic.
Some acne scars are elevated above the surface of the surrounding skin and may be hypertrophic, but need to be keloidal in nature all the time. Apart from these clinical aspects your treating dermatologist must deal with those acne scars that include textural irregularities, depression, aberrant pigmentation, erythema, vascular dilatation, unclear or irregular borders, and papules.
Consulting a highly qualified dermatologist is an important step to handling all your skin concerns, especially while dealing with acne scars. The best skin specialist in Hyderabad for acne – Dr. Ravali Yalamanchili, offers her patients a complete and comprehensive and state-of-the-art service for the treatment of acne scars. Our comprehensive acne treatment in Hyderabad includes three specialized approaches for different scar types. No matter whatever the type of scars the patient presents to us, we at Neya Dermatology and Aesthetics, take the complete case of the patient.
You can consult Dr. Ravali Yalamanchili now!
Novel technologies and procedures to treat acne scarring
Radiofrequency microneedling (RFMN): One of the novel dermatologic devices which was recently introduced into the dermatologist’s armamentarium is radiofrequency microneedling technology. Since the traditional devices treating acne scars in brown skin have a higher risk of post-inflammatory hyperpigmentation (PIH), radiofrequency microneedling can help in such cases.
Numerous studies have demonstrated the safety and efficacy of energy-based devices such as radiofrequency microneedling for the treatment of acne in brown skin types.
Subcision: Also called as the subcutaneous incisionless surgery, this is a minor surgical procedure. The principle of this procedure lies in the breakage of the fibrotic strands, which are attached to the scar by the underlying subcutaneous tissue.
This procedure is indicated for treating depressed scars and wrinkles through a needle inserted through a puncture in the skin surface. This is why it is also called “incisionless” surgery. Sharp edges are manoeuvred under the defect to make subcuticular cuts. The depression is lifted by the releasing action of the procedure, as well as from connective tissue that usually forms during the course of normal wound healing.
Why Professional Chemical Peels Outperform At-Home Treatments
Chemical peels are those kinds of treatments that help in exfoliating the skin by removing the dead cells of the skin apart from encouraging cell production (cell turnover). While they can be helpful in treating mild acne scars, it must be understood that they are also useful in improving the overall skin texture.
Icepick scars may respond well to high concentration trichloroacetic acid (TCA) for chemical reconstruction. In a study published in 2015, 53 adult patients suffering from atrophic acne scars are recruited and for every 2 weeks, 70% trichloroacetic acid (TCA) is applied on the face using a chemical reconstruction of skin scars therapy. It is also called the CROSS therapy.
After the two-week period, it was noted that the application with 70% trichloroacetic acid (TCA) resulted in good (in some cases even excellent improvement) in treating the acne scars in 66% of all the patients based on both the patient assessments as well as the treating dermatologist assessments.
The study concluded that 81% of patients were either satisfied or very satisfied with that just 70% trichloroacetic acid (TCA) treatment.
Imagine what would happen if the application of trichloroacetic acid (TCA) treatment is increased to 100%.
There is no need to imagine because in another study comprising 16 patients suffering from acne, 100% TCA is used. This study which is published in 2013 demonstrated that all of them provided positive results while 69 percent reported excellent results, and the remaining people reported good results.
The high strength of trichloroacetic acid can remodel the dermal collagen. Trichloroacetic acid application is a relatively inexpensive treatment and has a well-tolerable profile as attested by the patients. Nevertheless, it must be understood that trichloroacetic acid should be done as a stand-alone therapy or, if in multimodal approaches, be done before laser treatments and allowed to “set.”
Moisture induced by ablative and fractional laser treatments can dilute or spread the effect of the trichloroacetic acid beyond the desired boundaries and the penetration of trichloroacetic acid into freshly lasered skin may be unpredictable.
Apart from trichloroacetic acid, there are various other types of chemical peels for various types of acne scar treatments. Few of them include:
● Keratinolytic chemical peel which works by weakening the bonds between keratinocytes present in the skin, thus forcing them to shed.
● Glycolic acid chemical peel which works as a neutralizing agent.
● Salicylic acid chemical peel which has a higher lipophilicity than glycolic acid, thus making it an excellent option for acne treatment, as it can effectively permeate acne lesions and oily skin.
● Jessner solution chemical peel which contains a mixture of 14% resorcinol, 14% salicylic acid, and 14% lactic acid dissolved in ethanol and is used for the treatment of acne and hyperkeratotic lesions.
Do acne marks go away with chemical peels applied at home?
Although chemical peels can be applied at home, it must be understood that although being a simple and inexpensive approach, it is not effective. Furthermore, in the case of choosing the wrong product or completing the method incorrectly, a variety of problems could erupt, which could even deteriorate the condition of the skin. This is where a dermatologist comes in. They will assist you in achieving your desired results in a short period of time.
A professional pimple and acne treatment using chemical peels offers superior results compared to at-home alternatives. It is tailored to the patient’s specific requirements. The dermatologist will urge you to discontinue retinol products at least one week before the procedure.
When you consult with Dr. Ravali Yalamanchili of Neya Dermatology and Aesthetics, the best dermatologist inJubilee Hills, she will work with you to create a personalised treatment plan that includes in-office procedures and specially formulated skincare products to ensure you achieve the smooth, clear, healthy complexion you desire.
For personalized acne treatment and to learn about acne treatment cost, consult with the best skin specialist in Hyderabad, Dr. Ravali Yalamanchili at Neya Dermatology and Aesthetics.
To schedule a consultation, please call +91-7832009999
Read More:
