Acne Scarring Information Hampshire UK
The Acne Scar Concept
Visualise an acne scar as a dip in a living, biological, carpet (the skin) spread over the muscle, bone and fat on your face. The carpet remodels itself slowly over a 5-7 year period.
Treatments
- Stimulate the skin to remodel itself more quickly with Obagi Nu-Derm.
- Stimulate the skin to repair 1-2 mm, shallow holes with Fraxel laser treatment.
- Stimulate the skin to repair deeper scar 1-2mm diameter with localised deep peels.
- Cut out deeper or wider scars and join the skin edges together with stitches.
- Repair any damage to the supporting "floorboards" with subcision and possibly filler injections.
Superficial peels, micro-dermabrasion and mid-depth chemical peel like the Obagi Blue Peel do not improve acne scarring.
What are acne scars?
Acne scars are formed when an inflamed acne cyst destroys the collagen in the inner layer of the skin (the dermis).
As the dermis repairs itself, like all wounds, it contracts leaving dips in the surface of the skin that represent the individual scars.
The shape of the scar is probably determined by the size of the acne cyst and the structure that has been destroyed.
How can acne scars be treated?
The treatment of acne scars is determined by the shape and depth of the scars, the thickness of your skin and your skin's reaction to injury. Almost everyone has a range of different scars and will need a combination of treatments.
Everyone with more than 5-6 scars should use Obagi Nu-Derm. Obagi Nu-Derm forces the active form of intracellular Vitamin A (Tretinoin) deep into the skin where it stimulates dermal fibroblasts to re-model the dermis more rapidly.
Scars gradually fade because the dermis re-models itself every few years. Tretinoin speeds up this process.
The fractional laser treatment stimulates dermal re-modelling of skin even more powerfully than tretinoin. Because it on treats 30% of the dermis per treatment, it can reach down further into the skin than a deep peel without causing further scarring.
Only the area with scarring needs treatment.
Repeated stimulations with the Fraxel laser are needed. Expect a minimum of 5 treatments. Space them at least 6-8 weeks apart. The idea is to keep a steady brew of remodelling chemicals bubbling in the dermis.
This procedure is carried out under local anaesthetic and takes 30-60 minutes. A small surgical blade is inserted under the skin to detach the base of the scars from the underlying structures. This allows the base of the scar to raise up nearer to the skin surface. It causes a small amount of bruising.
If a significant amount of support tissue has been lost, it will need to be replaced with filler injections.
These are very localised deep peels. The acronym CROSS stands for Chemical Reconstruction Of Skin Scars.
It is used for deep narrow scars such as "ice-pick" scars.
Each scar is individually peeled rather than resurfacing the whole face. This allows you to get back to work earlier and greatly reduces the risks associated with deep peels.
The peel causes a wound and the dermis remodels itself as the wound heals. Meticulous wound care after the peel is essential to get good results.
Who should not have their acne scars treated?
People who are prone to forming keloid scars should always seek treatment from an experienced Consultant Dermatologist or Plastic Surgeon
How to avoid acne scars
Only squeeze acne spots that have an obvious white head. If you squeeze the deeper cysts, you may spread the infection and increase the chances of the cyst leaving a scar.
_0.contentpanel.JPG "Acne scarring treated with a Fraxel or fractional laser")
