Acne Scar Reduction

Suffering from moderate to severe acne is bad enough, having to deal with the unsightly aftermath just makes it worse. If you have suffered from acne and now find yourself with unsightly scars as a reminder, you'll be pleased to know that there are some things that can be done to reverse some of the damage. There are acne scar reduction techniques that may be able to help you.

When your skin gets inflamed from a breakout it can result in an infection which can lead to loss of elastin and collagen, and that can lead to skin cell damage. The body will attempt to repair the damaged skin by using a connective tissue to mend the wound. This connective tissue is the scar.

Of course, prevention is always the best remedy. If you can stop your acne outbreak in it's early stages you'll go a long way to preventing scarring. You don't have to wait until pimples are fully formed before you start to treat your outbreak. Many people believe in this misconception and feel like they need to give the pimple time to grow so that it will expel the toxins itself.

If you follow this belief you are actually more likely to get scars than if you treated the outbreak and prevented the pimples from getting so advanced. If you already have scars your dermatologist can recommend the appropriate treatment options. If at all possible you should see your doctor since acne sufferers may have sensitive skin and may have reactions to some do it yourself acne remedies.

Here is a list of some of the most common techniques used to diminish scars, of course scars will fade on their own over time but if you want to speed up the process these things may help. Your doctor will tell you which is the best option for you based on the severity of the scar and your skin type:

1. Laser therapy. This technique can help clear up scars by killing bacteria and increase oxygen to the damaged skin. Lasers can burn away any excess sebum which will reduce the thick texture of the scar and make it less noticeable.

2. Dermabrasion or microdermabrasion are both ways of surgically removing the outer layer of skin by scraping it off. The remaining skin is the 'new' skin that was underneath and it will be healthy unblemished skin.

3. Topical creams such as Retin A are used to help improve not only texture issues from scarring but also help reduce discoloration whether your skin has lightened or darkened. Retin A does have some potentially serious side effects, the most common one is an extreme sensitivity to sunlight.

4. Chemical skin peel is when chemicals are used to peel away the damaged top layer of skin. This method will usually take a fairly long recovery period of up to three weeks.

The effectiveness of any of these methods will depend to a large degree on the skin type of the patient as well as the size and severity of the scars. It's always best to talk to your doctor and find out what they recommend when it comes to acne scar reduction. You do have options and you can get rid of or at least lessen your unsightly acne scars.