Acne scars come in many forms. No one treatment is able to best treat all scars. We offer many options in order to best treat any patients suffering from disfiguring acne scars. Scars are divided into many subgroups
- Rolling (softly indented scars)
- Boxcar (depressed scars with a sharp border)
- Ice pick (narrow, but deep small scars)
- Hypertrophic or Keloidal (inflamed and thickened scars)
- Dark pigmentation (discoloration is not true scarring and usually slowly resolves without treatment)
- Erythematous (pink or red areas but not true scarring, usually slowly resolves without treatment)
Options
Fraxel Re:store Laser (Non-ablative Fractional Resurfacing): Fractional resurfacing is a safe, reliable way to improve acne scars in all skin types with minimal downtime.
Candela V-Beam Laser (Pulsed Dye Laser): A good option for pink scars, including hypertrophic or keloidal scars. The laser is used to remove unwanted blood vessels that produce a pink appearance.
Lumenis Ultrapulse Encore (Ablative Fractional Resurfacing): A more aggressive skin resurfacing device that may allow for less number of treatments compared to the Fraxel Re:store to achieve similar results.
Subcision: A small needle is used to break up scar tissue underneath rolling acne scars. Usually no downtime, however bruising lasting 1-2 weeks may be seen. This technique is often best combined with other techniques, such as laser treatment.
Punch Excision: Very small instruments are used to surgically cut out ice pick scars. A stitch is placed. The resulting scar usually looks better than the scar it replaced.
Corticosteroid Injection: Used only for hypertrophic scars or keloids, a series of injection with medicinal steroids may shrink an inflamed raised scar. Any of our dermatologists offers this technique.
