Research shows that acne affects 5% of adults and over 80% of young people making it a very common skin problem. Acne is a curable skin condition, which leaves behind unsightly blemishes, commonly known as acne scars. Acne scars should be treated with the urgency they deserve so that they don’t result in permanent scarring. There has been a lot of time and money invested in the research on how to treat acne scars, as they not only damage the skin but also the sufferer’s self esteem and appearance.

Today, acne scars are treated by combining topical skin care medications alongside sparingly selected skin resurfacing and surgical procedures. You can tell apart acne scars by the shape, appearance and their size wherein they are recognized as Boxcar, Rolling and Icepick. Depending on the duration they have stayed on someone’s skin, acne scars can further be termed as early or permanent. As expected, the early or fresh scars are battled effectively by topical medications, but permanent scars may have a need for surgical intervention.

Findings reveal that at least half a dozen acne scar cases require surgical intervention. A surgeon generally examines the medical history, type of skin, type of scarring, age and sex of the patient before performing any surgical procedure. There are different kinds of procedures such as dermal fillers whereby the surgeon inject fillers like collagen into the skin, and even hyaluronic acid. The fillers act by elevating the scar base to the normal level of the skin.

The other kind of surgical procedure is known as punch excision and as the name may suggest, it entails using punch biopsy tool to make incisions on the affected skin, and then stitching the edges of the skin together. This procedure is normally conducted on boxcar and icepick kind of scars. A new variant method of punch excision is skin graft replacement whereby a skin graft is used to repair the acne scar.

Deep boxcar kind of acne scars is treated using punch elevation whereby the scar’s base is excised and raised to the normal skin surface. The sharp edges are then joined together using glue and sutures. Rolling kind of acne scars are treated using subcutaneous incision whereby a special needle is inserted beneath the skin where it cuts the tissue that binds the scar. Another procedure that can be carried out to clear acne scars is laser resurfacing whereby it burns up the skin’s top layer reducing it to the same level as the foot of the scars. Resulting new scars and bruises heal and fade away after a week or so, leaving a clear skin.

Be advised that these procedures can be expensive; hence you need to discuss with your surgeon the right one for you. By and large, it is said that prevention is better than cure. It is vital that you observe the simple precautions that end up causing or worsening your skin condition. Simple things such as regular exercise, reviewing your diet, avoiding direct sunlight and using medications such as alpha hydroxyl acids and tretinoin can go a very long way.

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