Acne and Acne Scarring

What treatment options are available for acne?

Over-the-counter and prescription medications are available for mild to moderate acne. If they aren’t helping, talk to Dr. Dinh about other acne treatments. She may suggest some of the following:

• Topical Retinoids
• Antibiotics for bacterial infections
• Azelaic and salicylic acids
• Dapsone gel 
• Light therapy
• Chemical peel
• Drainage and extraction
• Steroid injection
• Isotretinoin (used to be known as accutane)
• Acne facials and extractions

Prescription acne drugs might not produce results for four to eight weeks. It could take months or years to clear acne up completely depending on the reason for your acne. If you have had acne in the past and it left scars, treatment solutions are also available.

Why does acne cause scarring?

Scarring is your body’s natural response to injury, first sealing the wound with clotted blood, then forming a scab and healing the tissues underneath it until they fully regenerate. Minor wounds don’t leave a scar, but ones that penetrate the dermis underneath the skin can cause scarring when new tissue grows.

Acne is a common skin complaint. Mild forms don’t usually leave scars when they heal, but severe acne can cause scarring because of the way the lesion forms.

Acne scarring forms three distinct types of blemishes:

• Ice pick: indentations in the skin are deep but small
• Boxcar: indentations can be shallow or deep but have sharp edges and angles
• Rolling: shallow and wide with a wavy appearance

Dr. Dinh can assess your acne scars and recommend the most appropriate treatment to reduce their severity.

What acne scar treatments are available?

There are several approaches to treating acne scars:

Skin resurfacing removes the surface of the skin to reveal fresh, new skin. Dr. Dinh can perform skin resurfacing using topical prescriptions, picolaser technology, microdermabrasion, or a chemical peel. Several treatments will likely be needed to minimize the acne scarring, depending on the depth of the scarring. 

Dermal fillers are injections containing substances, such as hyaluronic acid, that helps to fill the indentation left by the acne scar. This isn’t a permanent solution because your body absorbs the filler over time, but it does smooth the acne pit out for many months.

Microneedling stimulates new tissue growth by making multiple tiny wounds on the skin’s surface. Your body reacts to these microlesions by producing new collagen fibers that help fill the scarred areas. Platelet rich plasma (PRP) applied after the microneedling can be helpful in stimulating more collagen growth and enhance the treatment.  It can take several treatment sessions to get the full benefit.

You may need a course of treatments to see the optimal results. Dr. Dinh can advise you how many sessions you’ll likely need at your consultation. Call DC Dermatology to schedule your appointment or book one online today.