Even if you have made it through the various hormonal rites of passage, the presence of acne scarring can still be a blemish on your appearance. If you want to know how to get rid of acne scars, there’s a big chance that picking and squeezing your skin imperfections have resulted in a semi-permanent reminder that your skin is less-than-perfect. The good news is that there are a number of professional scar revisions available that can remove or minimise the appearance of your acne scars, depending on how deep they run.
What Are Acne Scars And How Are They Formed?
Scars from acne breakouts are generally classified into two categories: those that are bumpy and present above the surface, and those that create depressions in the surface of your skin. The type of scarring you experience from acne tends to occur as a result of the amount of collagen you develop during the healing phase.
If your body produces too much collagen, your acne scarring is likely to look like raised bumps or textures, also called hypertrophic scars. If you produce too little collagen, you will probably have depressions in your skin where the acne breakout was. These are known as atrophic acne scars.
What Causes Acne Scars To Develop?
As if skin breakouts weren’t bad enough, the risk of acne scarring serves as a constant reminder of an imperfect skin. And, as most of us know, scars are the most difficult skin imperfections to hide with makeup. They develop as a result of deep skin infections that are caused by a combination of excess skin oil, bacteria and dead skin cells.
That is why picking and squeezing at spots and pimples should be avoided – because these habits tend to do the opposite of what you want, and that is to push the infected material deeper into the skin and create a bigger infection. These habits can also cause the development of secondary cysts and nodules in the skin.
People who have inflammatory acne conditions such as cysts and nodules, which develop deeper in the skin, are also more prone to acne scarring even if they do not aggravate the area through picking and squeezing.
Your skin will try to heal itself through the production of collagen fibres but these are usually not as strong as the original fibres and scars are thus evident.
How To Treat Acne Scarring?
While there is a plethora of products available on the market, as you can see from the information above, scars are formed below the surface of the skin. This is partly why it is so difficult to cover them up with makeup and change the appearance of the contours of your skin. Professional treatments like scar revisions really do offer you the best chance of managing acne scarring, but there are some lifestyle habits you should adopt or stop to improve the appearance of scars or to discourage them from developing:
- Don’t pick or squeeze skin imperfections
- Restrict the time you spend in the sun. protect your skin from the sun using SPF products, large sunglasses and a hat very time you are outside. Sun exposure can darken scars, which makes them much more noticeable.
- Don’t overclean your skin. Abrasive substances create microtears in the surface of your skin, which can aggravate it and cause more breakouts. Cleaning your face too often also strips it of its natural oils, which may result in over-production of sebum.
- Address the cause of your acne. If you are still having breakouts, it’s time to investigate the cause behind it and stop the scars before they form.
How To Get Rid Of Acne Scars With Professional Scar Revisions?
Chemical Peels
If your acne scars are superficial and not too deep, it may be possible to treat them with chemical peels. A chemical peel removes the outer layer of the skin and promotes deep skin healing. It may also be effective at preventing acne breakouts and addressing any premature signs of ageing.
Dermal Fillers
If you have deep depressions from acne scarring, dermal fillers can restore facial volume where atrophic scars have formed. Fillers may be suitable for targeted areas that are prone to breakouts but may not be practical if your acne scarring is widespread. Fillers are not permanent, and last for a few months to a year, but they may assist in promoting collagen production and offer a short to medium term solution.
Laser Facial Resurfacing Treatment
Laser facial resurfacing treatment is a technique that directs beams of light or laser at the affected areas of your skin, to remove it layer by layer. It works well for targeted areas that have been scarred, and may also be used for the treatment of fine lines and wrinkles.
Laser facial resurfacing treatment is ideal for removing blemished skin and to promote the development of new skin which is younger, tighter and healthier-looking because of improved and increased collagen production. It improves the texture and contours of your skin and results can be noticeable after one treatment. Laser facial treatments tend to work best on people who have lighter skin complexions because they are at lower risk of hyper-pigmentation however a highly skilled skin technologist will be able to use the correct lasers to address skin concerns on different complexions.
If you still want to know more about how to get rid of acne scars please contact us for a confidential appointment: (02) 9158 6375.
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