After puberty, in most cases acne disappears. However, what happens when this skin lesion disappears and leaves in its wake a myriad of scars and scars that disfigure and alter the surface of our face?
The disease is cured but the after-effects remain. Acne mainly affects the areas of the skin with the highest density of sebaceous glands. These include the face, chest and upper back. The presence of pustules and nodules leads in some cases to scars that can leave terrible marks on the skin.
Acne scars
Acne scars are the consequence of skin infections and inflammations that in most cases have not been properly healed. Acne can leave scars for life.
Prevention of acne scars
Nowadays, scars caused by acne can be treated due to the countless advances in the field of aesthetics. The annoying marks suffered by both men and women can be eliminated nowadays with various techniques. On this subject, it is of vital importance to clarify that to prevent the formation of these unsightly scars it is essential that the person stops removing pimples and blackheads because the only thing that would achieve is to extend the infection and cause marks of greater or lesser intensity. Prevention plays an important role in avoiding risks.
Types of acne scars
In general terms, there are two types of scars: pigmented scars and those commonly known as “holes or pits”.
Pigmented scars
These are spots that persist after the pimple or blackhead has disappeared. These pigmented spots take on a pinkish or brownish coloration, disfiguring the face. This type of scarring is quite common in darker skins, although it is true that this type of epidermis is less prone to acne. It can therefore be said that the darker the skin, the greater the tendency to suffer from this problem.
Holes or pits
They are cavities or holes formed in the skin due to acne lesions of greater or lesser consideration and that in most cases have been infected with pus. The person affected by this problem squeezes the pimples subsequently generating this type of scars.
Ways to remove acne scars
Although a proper treatment for acne can minimize scars, there are currently several procedures and techniques that effectively eliminate the marks caused by this skin lesion. These include dermabrasion, peeling, microdermabrasion and Co2 laser treatment.
Peeling
The peeling consists of the application of different substances on the skin in order to exfoliate the most extensive layers of the skin. It is an English word that comes from the verb “peel”, i.e. to lift the skin in a figurative way. Peelings not only eliminate acne scars-depending on their intensity-but are also used with excellent results in the field of aesthetics to eliminate wrinkles and fade blemishes. The surgical time of the peeling depends on its penetration power and the treated extension. It must be taken into account that the greater the depth, the greater the risk. Generally anesthesia is required for its use, although in some cases for a deeper type of peel – phenol – deep sedation is usually used. This procedure produces an itching sensation at first, followed by redness, crusting and alterations in skin sensitivity. It is important to emphasize that if it is a deep peeling, it must be performed in the operating room with hospitalization of 1 to 2 days. The recovery of the skin depends to a great extent on the peeling used, varying from 1 day, the simplest, to six months, the deepest. If phenol has been used, the skin will be permanently bleached and it will be impossible to tan again.
Dermoabrasion
Dermabrasion is a treatment based on removing the epidermis and superficial dermis. Traditionally, wet or dry sandpaper was used, although it has now been replaced by devices with manually operated driving wheels. The materials used for dermabrasion can range from gypsum to aluminum oxide crystals, although the most commonly used at present are diamond burs coupled with a motor of 12,000 to 15,000 revolutions per minute. It is possible that after the use of this technique a slight hypo-pigmentation may occur in the treated area.
Chemical peel
Chemical peels are often used to treat skin that suffers from acne scarring. This type of peel involves removing the top layer of skin using a chemical product. It is one of the best techniques to eliminate superficial scars because the skin regenerates and improves its appearance considerably.
Infrared Laser and Co2 Laser
The technique of surface or infrared laser and Co2 laser was researched and put into practice by several dermatologists with considerable success and is now used in many other medical and scientific specialties. Both are considered phototherapeutic treatments. The basic differences between the infrared laser and the Co2 laser are the depth at which they work and the effects they produce on the skin. The infrared works at a more superficial level and is therefore indicated for milder sequelae of acne.
The Co2 laser
The Co2 laser, unlike the surface or infrared laser, is more effective for eliminating deep and severe acne sequelae because it works at a greater depth. At the same time it is a method that produces more intense burns on the skin and is therefore more painful. This type of phototherapeutic treatment is ablative, that is, it vaporizes the surface of the skin to promote and achieve the formation of new tissues. Co2 laser treatment requires anesthesia and once completed it is essential that the patient wear a protective bandage on the treated area. This bandage can be removed after 1 or 2 weeks depending on the sensitivity of the skin. It is of vital importance that the skin – after the treatment – is not exposed to sunlight because it is new tissue that needs to regenerate completely to avoid the appearance of stains.
Nowadays, non-ablative lasers -those that do not vaporize the surface of the skin- are also being used with good results. For this type of laser, anesthesia is not necessary and an average of 5 sessions at intervals of 3 weeks would be sufficient to eliminate the scars. Laser treatments are contraindicated for all those people whose skin is dark or have some kind of risk of hyper-pigmentation.
Both infrared laser treatment and Co2 laser treatment are effective solutions to eliminate scars and marks caused by acne, being used in many prestigious aesthetic clinics.
Ridectomy
Ridectomy is a fairly common surgical technique in clinics and beauty centers. Ridectomy is basically a skin tightening. It is used in most cases when there is severe laxity or flaccidity of the skin, obtaining magnificent results in the elimination of imperfections, scars and other sequelae caused by acne. This plastic surgery technique is performed in the operating room with a slight local anesthesia and requires only a few hours of stay in the hospital or clinic.
Collagen injections
This technique is based on injecting a type of collagen that is extracted from the cow and is purified. The objective of this implant is to replace the natural collagen that has been lost and consequently fill the scars produced by acne. In certain cases the bovine tissue can be replaced by other materials such as hyaluronic acid, polymethyl methacrylate microspheres, silicones or gora-tex among others. For more superficial scars, autologous lipocollagen and laboratory cultured fibroblasts can also be used.
Punch grafts
These are small skin grafts intended to replace scarred skin. The skin is initially punctured to remove the scars and then replaced with a graft, in which case the tissue is usually taken from the earlobe.
Autologous fat transfer
In this case, fat from different parts of the body is injected into the skin to fill and correct the defects caused by acne. This fat is injected under the surface of the skin in order to raise the sunken scars. In some cases it is possible that after the use of this method it is possible that the fat is reabsorbed and it may be necessary to repeat the operation.