Acne Scarring Treatment Guide: What You Need To Know About Acne Scarring

Is There Any Solution To Getting Rid Of Acne Scars On Your Face?

Acne scars are the result of clogged pores. When your pores become clogged with dirt and oil, acne will form. As the acne appears and grows worse, it will often leave deep pocket like scars when it fades. These scars do not generally fade over time like other types of scars, and they can be hard to get rid of.

There are acne scarring treatments however, that can heal acne scars and give you beautiful skin once again. Before you start looking for solutions to your acne scar problem, you really should take the time to learn more about this condition. Once you have learned the basics of acne scars, you can best understand how to treat them.

Step 1: Acne Scar Basics 101

What are Acne Scars?

Acne scars are a result of the tissue of the skin being permanently damaged by acne. They are the results of the body’s reaction to bacteria, dirt, and dead cells clogging the follicles or pores of the face. These are normally permanent marks that take dramatic action to remove.

These scars should not be confused with macules or “fake scars”. Macules are the red or white spots left behind after a blemish, which can remain for up to 6 months, but will then fade. Unlike these macules, a true acne scar will not fade without the aid of an acne scarring treatment.

Similarly, pigmentation changes should not be confused for and treated as acne scars. This pigmentation change can occur after acne has healed; it leaves the skin lighter or darker than it originally was before the breakout. Pigmentation can last up to 18 months, but is not a scar and scar treatments will often not have any effect on it.

What Are The Causes Of Acne Scars?

The answer to this seems quite obvious. Of course acne scars are caused by acne, in which the follicles and pores of the face become clogged with dead skin cells, oil, dirt, and bacteria. Sometimes acne can be mild and sometimes severe, but even the slightest cases of acne can leave scars behind.

When tissues within the body have been damaged, your body will automatically rush to repair the damage. White blood cells and inflammatory molecules combine to repair the site as soon as possible, but once the work is done, they often leave behind an ugly scar in their wake. When these white blood cells and molecules remain at the site for weeks or even months, people who are prone to scarring will develop an acne scar.

Another cause of acne scarring is the pinching or popping of the actual blemishes themselves. When you pop acne that is on your skin, you spread the infection around to other areas of your skin. This can damage the tissues found there, and a scar will appear.

How Are Acne Scars Different From Other Scars?

Since acne blemishes usually go deep into the skin, the scars that form as a result can be pitted and more prominent that scars caused by things such as a scrape. Acne scars are persistent, and do not fade easily with the use of antibiotic creams.

Acne scars are also different from other types of scars, because they appear primarily on a person’s face. Aggressive acne scars treatments are needed to get rid of these unsightly scars, whose shape is generally in an ice pick shaped causing a pock marked appearance.

Factors That Increase the Likelihood of Acne Scars

Acne scars are an exact result of acne on the skin. Therefore, the risk factors for developing acne become the risk factors for developing acne scars. Although not all people with acne will develop severe scarring, they will all develop at least some form of scarring as a result. However, acne scars treatment can help to minimize the damage caused by acne.

Common risk factors for acne scarring include:

•    Heredity – Chances are that if you have a family history of acne and scarring, then you will have a higher likelihood of developing them yourself.

•    Hormone Levels – Teenagers, those who are experiencing a menstrual period and pregnant women are all at a greater risk of developing acne scarring as a result of increased hormone levels.

•    Wearing Jewelry and Accessories – Jewelry and accessories such as necklaces, headbands, and hats can all increase the likelihood of acne scarring as well, since they store dirt and bacteria near the pores of the face.

•    The Use of Cosmetics – Cosmetics can trap dirt and oil inside the follicles of your face, which can increase the likelihood of acne and thus acne scarring.

There are many reasons that a person develops acne, but the more acne outbreaks that you have, the greater your chance of developing scarring as a result. Preventative measures can be used to reduce the risk of developing these scars, but to some extent they are inevitable, happening to millions of people each year.

Type of Scars

There are two main Types of acne scars, those caused by an increase in tissue formation and those caused by a loss of tissue. Although these two types of scars are a result of the same thing, they are dramatically different and may even require different forms of treatment. Before seeking out acne scar treatments, it is important to understand which type of scarring you have.

Increased Tissue Formation Scars

Scars that are a result of excess tissue forming are called keloids. These forms when there is an overproduction of collagen at the site of an acne blemish that is healing. The collagen will pile up until it eventually forms a hard smooth surfaced knob of a scar. Keloids are particularly unattractive, and are often the kind of scars that people are scrambling to get rid of.

Often, keloids will not form alone; normally you will see an entire row of them form in one location. These scars can be quite large, but sometimes will fade over the course of a few years. These types of scars can be harder to treat, as they actually protrude from the surface of the skin, but there are acne scar surgeries available that can diminish and even eliminate their appearance.

Loss of Tissue Scars

The more common type of acne scars are those caused from a loss of tissue. These are the scars that are most commonly seen on the face of people who have experienced acne. They can come in a variety of shapes, but are almost always sunk into the skin forming a pit or dip at the skin’s surface. The various types of these scars include:

1.    Ice Pick – These are often narrow scars that can be either deep or shallow and have a jagged edge like the mark of an ice pick.

2.    Depressed Fibrotic – Often large and hard to the touch, these are deep and jagged scars. Some ice pick scars can turn into these over time as well.

3.    Soft Scars – Normally circular and small, these scars are soft in nature, and have rolled edges that blend in with the healthy skin of the face.

4.    Atrophic Macules – Smaller scars when they appear on the face, these are often wrinkled at the bottom and blue in color at first while fading to white later on.

5.    Follicular Macular Atrophy – These occur mostly on the body and not on the face of a person. These are very small white scars that appear almost like whiteheads, and may continue for years.

There are many different kinds of scars that can form from acne. Each of them responds better to various treatments, but there are acne scarring treatments that can help to get rid of even the most stubborn cases of scarring.

Can Scarring Get Worse Without Treatment?

For the most part, acne scars do not usually get worse by themselves. However, there are a few factors that could cause scars that have already formed to become worse overtime if treatment is not sought. For instance, if you continue to have acne breakouts during the time that your current scars are healing, they can infect the scars that are still healing, or form new ones on top of those. This only adds to the tissue that is damaged, and can make eliminating a scar even harder.

Since scars that are damaged a second time can be almost impossible to get rid of, it is important to seek out an acne scarring treatment as soon as you can. You should also avoid letting your skin get dirty, using excessive makeup, and popping any existing acne, as this can increase your risk of infection.

Step 2: Acne Scar Prevention And Tips

Acne Scars Prevention

The only absolute way of preventing or minimizing acne scarring is to begin treating acne as it first begins. If you treat acne early on, you can minimize the damage it could cause. On the other hand, if you allow acne to get out of control, you will have a much greater chance of obtaining deep scars as the breakouts get worse. Other prevention methods include:

•    Do not pop blemishes, as this can lead to scarring.

•    Avoid doing anything that could irritate your skin further during a breakout, such as scrubbing your face while washing.

•    Visit a doctor for other prevention methods if you know that you have a hereditary predisposition towards acne.

Acne Scar Skin Care

In order to promote healing of old scars and to help prevent the likelihood of new ones, it is best to develop a regular acne skin care treatment program. This can consist of keeping your skin clean twice per day with a medicated or natural cleanser. Either option can work well; the important thing is that you minimize the risk of infection while your current scars have time to heal.

As part of a healing skin care program, you can also add in other treatments for acne scars such as acne scar creams. These creams are specially designed to repair the skin that has been scarred by acne, and can bring back the smooth skin surface that you once had.

Acne Scars: How To Remove Them

When it comes to removing acne scarring, there are a wide variety of methods that you can choose from. The option that works best for you can be different than the ones that work for someone else. There are surgical and medical procedures that must be performed by a doctor, have higher risks, and can be costly.

There are also more natural methods that utilize natural substances and healing creams to cure the scarring on your face. Although these natural methods are inexpensive and come with less risks, the also take longer to work, which it what makes some people opt for more drastic options. Some examples of common acne scar remedies that people use to remove acne scars include:

Chemical Peels

A chemical peel uses a specially formulated mix of chemicals to take off the top layer of skin on the face. This is an effective method of treating lighter level acne scarring and restoring a balanced pigmentation to the face. The downside is that a chemical peel can cost between $600 and $900, and there is no guarantee that it will remove all of your scars.

Laser Surgery

Acne laser surgery uses a high intensity laser pointed at the affected area to remove the damaged tissues this also restores a normal color to the skin surrounding the scarred area. Laser surgery does come with its risks though, may not be 100% effective, and costs about $1000 to $4000 depending on how large of an area you want done.

Collagen Injections

These injections are placed into the affected areas of the skin, and cause the skin in these areas to plump up. This minimizes the dips and pock marks of the scars that it is inserted into. Collagen injections do have relatively high risks of side effects, and are quite costly, ringing in at $300 – $500 per syringe.

Types of Acne Scar Creams

Acne treatment creams can be wonderful solutions for those who cannot afford the more expensive treatments, or who do not want to take a chance with the risks associated with those other methods. These creams are relatively inexpensive when compared to other acne scar treatments, and they can be applied from the comfort of your home. The different acne scar creams include:

Alpha Hydroxy Acids

Creams that contain the Alpha Hydroxy Acids can be used at home to perform chemical peels. These creams can erase fine lines and provide you with smoother skin by erasing the top layer of dead skin on your face.

Retin –A

Retin-A is a form of vitamin A that increases the turnover rate of new skin cells, and promotes the excretion of material from clogged pores. It is also the only cream ingredient that has been endorsed and proven to remove wrinkles and scarring.

Microdermabrasion

Microdermabrasion is a procedure in which creams and lotions with sharp edged tiny crystal are applied to the skin and then used to slough off the dead skin cells in the top layer. This is an extremely effective treatment for acne scars, and is one of the most popular acne scarring treatment there is.

When performed by a professional microdermabrasion can be pricey, but convenient home kits allow you to get the same results at half the cost.

Step 3: Take Action!

Acne scarring is a problem for millions of people worldwide. Almost everyone will experience some type of acne scarring at some point in their lives. Now that you have taken the time to learn why acne scarring occurs, how it can be prevented, and what the various types of scars and treatments are, you can begin to look for an acne scarring treatment that will work best for you.

Surgical and other costly medical procedures can be quite effective, but come with high risks of side effects and can quickly break the bank. However, if you are willing to work towards more gradual scar healing results, then acne scar creams and microdermabrasion kits may be a better alternative for you. These types of treatments for acne scaring can provide you with the same results as more drastic methods over a slightly longer period of time.

So why wait another minute? Click here to learn how you can get smoother skin starting today!

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