June 4, 2012 – If you’ve suffered from acne break-outs and finally had some success in treating the skin condition, you may be left with some acne scars. Sometimes the scars are minimal and will fade over time, but some acne scarring can be severe and need treatment from a qualified dermatologist or cosmetic surgeon. The fist step in treating acne scars is to identify what type of acne scarring you have.
There are four basic types of acne scars. The “ice pick” acne scars are very common and look like deep puncture scars, as from an ice pick. The scar holes or pits are about 2mm or less in diameter.
Boxcar acne scars normally develop on the cheeks or temples and can be deep like ice pick scars or shallow. The edges are well defined.
Rolling acne scars give your skin a kind of roller coaster track appearance. Severe acne causes tissue damage deep below your skin surface, and this causes rolling acne scars that make waves in the surface of the skin.
Hypertrophic acne scars are usually found on your chest and back, although some can form on your face and neck. Again, severe acne is the cause. If you had cysts or nodules that formed during your acne break-outs you may have developed hypertrophic acne scars that are like lumps and raised up on the skin where the acne cysts were. These scars normally are confined to where the acne cysts formed, but Keloid hypertrophic scars can expand out from the original acne scar.
No matter what type of acne scars you have, there are treatment methods available. Your dermatologist can prescribe topical creams, use microdermabrasion, chemical peels or laser therapy to help reduce scarring. Acne treatment is the first step in your skin care routine, but the treatment of acne scars is also important.
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