Breakouts alone can be frustrating. The temporary red spots pop up unexpectedly and can take days to heal. Concealing acne requires a combination of cover-up and foundation to expertly cover them.
What’s worse than those temporary bumps? When they leave scars behind. Despite careful treatment, there are times when acne scars are unavoidable. These marks aren’t only caused by attempts to pop pimples. In fact, sometimes they aren’t preventable.
Common Causes of Acne Scars
When the dermis, or second layer of the skin, is damaged, scars occur. This damage can be caused by attempts to pop a pimple or a rupture of the follicle wall. Either way, the effects are visible.
There are two types of acne that are prone to leaving scars on the skin. These are pustules and milia.
Pustules are red pimples, an inflamed blemish created by clogged pores. These swell up and later form a white head. While these are easy to burst, that is a surefire way to cause scarring. The best way to treat these is to use a warm compress to drain it and avoid irritating the skin.
Milia are different in that they are a small, hard white bump. These are not inflamed and they do not feel sore. They are the result of oils trapped under the skin’s surface.
Another cause of acne scars is the skin’s collagen level. Both too much collagen and not enough collagen can cause severe acne scars.
Hypertrophic scars are the result of too much collagen. These appear as bumps on the skin. On the other hand, too little collagen can cause atrophic scars. These appear as small holes in the skin.
Correcting Acne Scars
Makeup alone is often not enough to cover acne scars. Fortunately, there are ways to correct acne scarring.
Laser Skin Rejuvenation
The best treatment for severe acne scarring is laser treatment. Laser skin rejuvenation forces the creation of new skin cells to replace the old damaged skin cells. This treatment reaches the deepest layers of the skin without damaging the exterior.
By encouraging collagen growth, these treatments allow the skin to heal fully. The treatments only take about 20 minutes, so they are easy to fit into your schedule.
Chemical Peels
Best for medium acne scarring, this method can take a few weeks to work. Chemical peels remove layers of skin over the course of a few weeks. This results in longer healing time. A mild chemical peel can take as little as a few days to heel. To determine which is best for your care, consult with your skincare specialist.
Retinol Creams
This at-home solution is best for mild scarring. These creams can correct skin tone and fix acne scarring in young, healthy skin.
Retinol creams can be bought over the counter from a drugstore. While they can treat mild acne scars, these are not powerful enough to correct severe scarring.
If you are interested in laser skin rejuvenation, schedule an appointment today.