Acne Scars Treatment

Acne Scars

Acne scars are permanent textural changes or indentations that occur on the skin as a result of severe acne. When acne penetrates the skin deeply and damages the tissue beneath it, the body attempts to repair this damage. If the body produces too much or too little collagen during this healing process, scars can form.

Acne scars are typically classified into two main types:

• atrophic (depressed) scars such as ice pick, boxcar, and rolling scars
• hypertrophic (raised) scars

They commonly appear on the face but can also affect the back, chest, and other areas. Treatment options include topical medications, chemical peels, microneedling, laser therapy, dermal fillers, and in some cases, surgery. Prevention focuses on early acne treatment and avoiding skin picking or squeezing.

Integrated Skin Institute

• At Integrated Skin Institute, our experts offer you a comprehensive of effective, acne scar treatments that can be tailored to meet the needs of your acne scars and help achieve your aesthetic goals.
• Depending on the type of scarring, many patients need a combination of treatments, including laser resurfacing, for best results. Multiple sessions may be required.

Acne Scar Treatment Options

• Topical retinoids like Retin-A® can be very effective for reducing uneven texture and pigmentation.

• For red/inflammatory scars, first and foremost, the best treatment to minimize redness is a vascular laser/device (intense pulse light, PDL laser, KTP laser)

• For hypertrophic scars, the goal is to flatten the scar treatment involves initially intralesional injections with steroids +/ fluorouracil and may involve multiple sessions. Adjunctive resurfacing lasers (CO2, erbium) are also beneficial.

• For depressed scars, the goal is to elevate the scar
  • For ice pick scars, we utilize chemical reconstruction of skin scars (CROSS) in which TCA or carbolic acid is applied directly into each scar to induce inflammation and stimulate new collagen formation, causing gradual reduction of scar depth.
  • For boxcar and rolling scars, multiple modalities are employed:
    • CROSS – chemical reconstruction of skin scars
    • Subcision – uses a needle or cannula underneath the surface of rolling or boxcar scars to release bands of fibrous scar tissue, freeing the skin from being tethered to deeper tissue layers
    • Adding volume:
      • 1. Injectable hyaluronic acid (HA) filler – temporary filler, lasts 6 to 12 months; can be dissolved
      • 2. Polymethylmethacrylate (Belafill, PMMA) – semi- permanent filler; cannot be dissolved
      • 3. Biostimulatory filler – Hyperdilute Calcium Hydroxylapatite (Radiesse) or poly-L-lactic acid (Sculptra); stimulate collagen production
      • 4. Autologous Fat Grafting
    • Energy-based modalities
      • Fractional resurfacing lasers (CO2, erbium) – safe for all lighter (Fitzpatrick I-III) skin types; ablates the skin surface and uses heat to stimulate new collagen development
      • Radiofrequency with Microneedling (RFMN) – safe for all skin types; help break up/soften scar and stimulate collagen production
      • Microneedling – safe for all skin types; uses a needling device to stimulate the formation of new collagen and improve the texture of all acne scar types.
    • Chemical Peel Resurfacing – full face chemical peel often with trichloroacetic acid (TCA) or phenol-croton oil peel; controlled abrasion of the skin, relying on the skin’s natural healing capacity to heal the treated area in a smooth manner.

• Lastly, for all scars, they can be surgically excised (punch/local excision). While this leads to another scar, the goal is to shrink a conspicuous scar with less visible & improved linear scar that can further be refined with resurfacing

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To book a cosmetic or laser appointment please contact our friendly staff.

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