How To Remove Acne Scars

If you’ve ever suffered from acne, you’re probably curious about how to remove acne scars? Whether you had trouble with acne in your teens or found yourself managing adult acne, the result is still the same – spots that leave a mark long after the blemish has cleared up.

Fortunately, there are ways you can reduce the scars left by acne and in this blog, we’ll share them with you. But before we delve into how to remove acne scars, it’s helpful to understand what causes them in the first place.

What Is Acne?

Acne is a very common skin condition that can be mild, moderate or severe.

Mild acne affects everybody at some stage; whether it’s whiteheads that break out during your menstrual cycle or blackheads that plague your chin or nose. Mild acne tends to self-resolve after a few days, with little discomfort nor lasting scarring.

Moderate to severe acne, however, has far more impact on your skin, on your confidence and on your long term appearance. This form of acne affects the deeper layers (dermis) of your skin; pustules, nodules and cysts are the types of acne that are painful, hard to treat at home and are most likely to leave scars.

Why Does Acne Scar?

It’s not the acne itself that causes scarring, but your body’s response to it. When your body senses a wound, collagen is released to begin the healing process. Collagen is the protein responsible for creating the structure of your skin (its powers are harnessed in many of our anti-ageing treatments).

But when healing wounds, the skin’s ‘pattern’ isn’t perfectly replicated in the tissue remodelling, particularly if the wound was large or deep. This can leave an imperfect appearance in the skin – what we recognise as a scar.

The Types Of Acne Scar

Depending on your body’s skin repair response, you may develop different types of acne scarring. There are three main types of acne scar, and each has its own characteristics which respond to different types of treatment.

Knowing your scar types will help us understand how to remove acne scars for you.

Ice Pick Scars

Ice pick scars are small, deep holes in the skin. They form as a result of too little collagen being released in the healing stage – that’s why you end up with an uneven ‘pitted’ skin surface. Ice pick scars tend to be more difficult to treat at home than other scars, due to their depth.

Rolling Scars

Rolling scars usually follow long-term inflammatory acne and resemble waves. Sufferers often find they have many shallow scars, some that run together to create larger indentations.

Boxcar Scars

Boxcar scars appear as depressions in the skin, but these are larger and more rounded than ice pick scars. Shallow boxcar scars respond to over the counter solutions more readily, but deep crater-like scars are better suited to professional treatment.

As well as scarring, moderate to severe acne can also leave your skin with pigmentation (a discolouring of the skin) or hypopigmentation. This is where the skin is either darker or lighter than the surrounding skin tone.

How To Remove Acne Scars – The Home Remedies

So, how to remove acne scars at home? If your scarring is mild then home treatments may work for you, but if you’re struggling with moderate to severe scarring then you’ll probably find you need professional treatment to get results.

Aloe Vera

Hailed as the go-to for sunburn and skin ailments, aloe vera can help with soothing current acne as well as help with older scars. There’s evidence to suggest that aloe vera can aid the collagen production process too. Since aloe vera is a great overall moisturiser and skin healer, there’s no harm in adding it to your skin regime!

Vitamin C

Not only does a dose of vitamin C boost your immune system, but when applied topically, it can also help reduce the appearance of acne scars. A powerful antioxidant, vitamin C plays an important role in collagen synthesis. Top tip – go for a serum rather than a cream, as it’s more likely to penetrate your skin and combine use with a vitamin E cream.

Silicone

Silicone is a far-reaching multipurpose polymer. From sealing taps to breast implants, you’re likely to have used silicone almost daily – but what about removing acne scars? Silicone gels or sheets are available to manage scars. You cover the area with the silicone for a prolonged period of time, and slowly you may see a reduction in scar tissue.

How To Remove Acne Scars – Treatments

Sadly, some scars are just too hard to treat at home. But don’t worry, at Elite Aesthetics we have many different treatment options that can greatly diminish your acne scars. Following a consultation, we will make suggestions on how to remove acne scars based on your skin type, the scar type and your lifestyle.

Microneedling

Microneedling is a technique that uses the body’s own healing process to stimulate collagen production. Using the latest technology, micro holes are made in your skin. Although this sounds uncomfortable, the holes are so tiny it’s actually a comfortable treatment.

At Elite Aesthetics, we specialise in Derma FNS Therapy, an advanced procedure that causes minimal skin trauma.

For scarring, the needling process helps to break down abnormal collagen growth, and then, as your skin heals the micro-wounds, new collagen is created. This new collagen will help to even out your skin’s surface, reducing or even removing any acne scars.

Click here to find out more about Microneedling…

Vampire Facial

The Vampire Facial is one of the most exciting treatments available – despite its spooky sounding name! The facial uses platelets collected from a sample of your own blood to stimulate and boost your skin’s natural repair process. This treatment uses microneedling but pairs it with the power of your own plasma, leaving you with smoother skin with noticeably reduced acne scarring.

Click here to learn more about the Vampire Facial… 

Chemical Peels

Chemical peels have long been the go-to for effective skin renewal. Did you know that the first chemical peels were introduced in the mid-1800s? Although it wasn’t until the 90s that their popularity increased as treatments became more accessible.

Our chemical peels are some of the most advanced on the market and we offer a variety of products that can be tailored to your specific needs.

In essence, the peels all do the same thing – they remove the top layer of skin which is the most damaged. In doing this, your skin repairs itself with a more even and smoother complexion. For more serious acne scarring, stronger chemical peels can be used.

To find out which chemical peel works best on your acne scars, please book a consultation.

Find Out How We Can Help

We love to discuss how to remove acne scars with you in more detail. Our consultation will help to diagnose the best and most effective treatment for your type of acne scars.

To book, just contact us to make an appointment.  We are just 10 minutes from Dartford and Gravesend station, 15 minutes from Maidstone and 20 minutes from London.