Breaking out is one of the most painful experience to go through. Even worse are those scars that active breakouts leave on your skin after they’re gone.
Nonetheless, acne affects almost everyone, at least at some point in life. So, if you get those stubborn scars, you shouldn’t feel so isolated. If you have tried treating the scars at home with no success, the medical aesthetic experts at https://veritas.com.sg/acne-scars/believe that perhaps your best bet would be to seek help from a reputed dermatologist.
What are the 4 Different Types of Acne Scars?
Acne scars are grouped into two primary categories. These include atrophic acne scars and hypertrophic acne scars.
Here’s the difference: Atrophic acne scars result from loss of tissues. On the contrary, hypertrophic acne scars would result if you have excess tissues.
From these two main categories, the acne scars are further broken down into four main types, which are; boxcar, rolling scars, icepick scars, and keloid scars. Treating these scars is complicated, and in most cases, OTC drugs may not really help.
Therefore, it would be better to seek professional help where your dermatologist will assess your condition and recommend the right procedure to enhance your skin’s look and texture. It is also possible that you have more than one type of acne scarring on your skin.
This is slightly more complicated; hence your doctor may have to use different treatment options to clear the scars fully from your skin. Read on to discover the best acne scar removal options for each of the four types of acne scars.
Atrophic Scars
These scars are most common on the face. Since they’re formed due to tissue loss, they will result when your body does not produce sufficient collagen when the wound formed due to tissue loss heals. The scars classified under this category include;
- Boxcar
Boxcar acne scars are typically wide, U-shaped, and shallow with sharper edges. They can also be more profound, depending on how severe your acne was.
The shallower scars are easier to treat than the deeper ones since they respond better to most skin resurfacing treatments for acne scars. Here’s a breakdown of the treatment options for boxcar scars;
- Subsicion: In subsicion, your dermatologist will break up the tough acne scar tissue using a sharp needle beneath your skin’s surface.
- Punch excisions: This is the exact opposite of the subsicion approach. Here, your dermatologist will peel off the acne scar’s indented area and then pull its edges together using a suture to close the gap.
- Laser Treatments: If your doctor determines that laser treatment is the best way to treat your boxcar acne scars, they will use collagen-boosting laser treatments to stimulate your skin to manufacture collagen and “re-plump” itself naturally. Collagen-boosting laser treatments are commonly used with other treatment options for better results. At Hair and Skin Science, a complimentary LED facial is added to the laser treatment to reduce inflammation and promote faster healing. Available in Sydney, Melbourne, and Brisbane.
- Fillers: Your dermatologist may also use fillers to flatten out the scars.
- Rolling Acne Scars
Rolling scars look like broad depressions with rounded edges. They have an irregular rolling appearance, giving your skin a wavy texture.
In most cases, dermatologists prefer laser treatment as a method of removing these scars. Laser treatments work by resurfacing the top layers of the affected skin regions. Laser treatments present your dermatologist with the most straightforward way of targeting lesions responsible for the scars and to stimulate the skin to produce collagen.
Perhaps the only downside is that you may need more than just one session to fully clear the scars. It may also need some downtime.
- Icepick Acne Scars
The icepick acne scars are usually narrower with V-shaped scars. The scars may go deep into your skin and look like chickenpox scars or just oval holes.
Considering that these scars can go deep beneath the surface of your skin, they’re some of the most complicated to treat. Depending on how deep the scar is your doctor may recommend chemical peels.
Chemical peels work by causing the affected area to ‘burn’ and peel off so the skin can naturally heal and close the scar openings. Either way, your doctor may also recommend punch incision or laser treatment to remove the icepick acne scars.
Hypertrophic Acne Scars
These acne scars are predominantly common on the chest and back. Since they’re caused by the skin producing too much collagen when the wound left by your acne heals, thus discoloring the skin surface, the focus here will be to remove the inflammations and clear the discoloration on your skin.
The mounds may appear brown, purple, or even red. Keloid scars are under this category. To remove the keloid acne scars, your doctor may recommend a cortisone shot. Either way, they can also surgically remove them or use retinoids and laser treatments to clear and shrink them.
Over to You
Acne scars can be frustrating, but there is always a better way to deal with each of them. A good dermatologist will assess your condition and then compare the available treatment options to eliminate them. If you’re frustrated by acne scars, schedule a consultation with us today to see how we may help.