In the United States, acne is the most common skin condition. Acne outbreaks affect approximately 50 million people annually. Acne is typically regarded as a problem that affects adolescents and young adults, but it frequently persists into adulthood. Up to 15% of adult women, according to the American Academy of Dermatology, suffer from acne.
There are numerous psychological effects of acne itself. Embarrassment and low self-esteem can affect people. However, there is no time to celebrate just yet until the acne goes away. Acne scars frequently replace blemishes. Your self-esteem may also suffer as a result of these scars, or worse. One investigation discovered that up to 90% of individuals with skin break out experience scarring.
What causes acne scarring?
Scars from acne are typically caused by severe acne, also known as inflamed acne. Pores, also known as hair follicles, are the source of all acne because they become clogged with oil, bacteria, and dead skin. The follicle wall is harmed when an excessive amount of these substances fills one of the pores. Scarring is the result of this damage. Unless you poke, prod, and squeeze them, minor blemishes rarely result in scarring.
Your body attempts to repair the damage with collagen when acne causes damage to the follicle wall or skin. Your body produces too much or too little collagen from time to time.
The indentation or depression that the collagen leaves on the skin appears when there is insufficient collagen. The term for this kind of scar is atrophic scarring. Hypertrophic or keloid scars are other names for scars that are raised when the body produces an excessive amount of collagen.
Unfortunately, as you get older, your skin becomes less elastic, making acne scars even more obvious.
Treatment for acne scars that works
There are a lot of treatments available to help you feel better about yourself and get rid of acne scars. At Danvers Family Doctors, PC, our doctors use the IconTM laser, which is one of the best ways to hide acne scars.
Light pulses are used by the Icon laser technology to penetrate the skin and encourage the production of collagen. We can help depressed acne get the collagen it needs to fill out with with Icon, and raised scars can get collagen buildup around them, smoothing out your skin and making you look better.
A few minutes is all it takes to get an Icon treatment. The severity of your acne scars may necessitate multiple treatments. The fact that Icon is non-invasive and requires little recovery time is one of its advantages.
How to avoid acne scarring
Although it may appear that acne scarring is inevitable, there are steps you can take to either reduce the severity of your scarring or reduce the likelihood that you will develop scars. Be diligent about treating acne whenever it occurs. Acne scarring is less likely to occur if you have fewer breakouts and less time between them.
Then, when the acne goes away, continue taking good care of your skin and following your doctor’s instructions for acne treatment. Furthermore, you presumably know this, however it bears rehashing — never pick, crush, or pop your flaw.
Call Danvers Family Doctors, PC or schedule an appointment online if you want to learn more about scar reduction therapy or if you want to get rid of acne scars.