What Are Acne Scars?
Acne scars are marks left behind after the acne itself has gone away. It’s common to have scarring.
Treatment can help make them less noticeable. Our consultant will look at your scarring and make recommendations based on the type of damage to your skin and how serious it is.
Types of Acne Scars
Acne can leave different types of scars depending on what kind it is and how you take care of it. There are at least seven types:
- Ice pick: deep but small pits
- Boxcar: sharp angles and edges; can be shallow or deep
- Rolling: tend to be wide and shallow (a wavy look) caused by damage under the surface
- Hypertrophic: raised scar tissue where acne was
- Keloid: raised scar that’s larger than acne was
- Dark spots or staining: skin looks red to purple
- Perifollicular elastolysis: flesh-colored or yellow
Acne Scar Clinical Treatment
You may need more than one kind of treatment to smooth your skin.
Skin resurfacing. The goal is to remove damaged layers of skin so that new, healthy skin appears. There are four major ways your doctor can do this:
- Laser. A laser creates a more even surface to your skin.
- Dermabrasion. A rapidly spinning wheel with a rough surface removes damaged skin.
- Chemical peel. A special type of acid removes the top layer of your skin. This can help with deeper scars.
- Microdermabrasion. Tiny crystals sprayed onto the skin may help with mild scars.
New skin will begin to form about 7-10 days after resurfacing. The area may stay pink from several weeks to several months.
