There are a number of treatments and surgical procedures available to alleviate acne blemishes. These treatments are mainly aimed to help fade or erase acne marks permanently. Unfortunately there is no universal cure to blot out acne marks. Although one treatment process could prove to be useful for others, it might not be effective in your case.
Most popular treatments available for acne scar removal are laser treatments, chemical peels, topical medications, dermabrasion, autologous fat transfer, and manual excision. Pockmark caused by acne typically look like "ice pick" pits, craterlike or keloidal scars which could be lightened over time or erased completely. There are two broad classifications for laser treatment. One is ablative or resurfacing and another is nonablative.
In the former method the impinged laser radiation is absorbed by the water molecules of the cells in the affected skin surface. This absorption process is instantly followed by immediate vaporization of water from the cells causing destruction of the cells and the associated scarred cutaneous layer. Thus the damaged skin layer gets peel off and the biological process of dermal collagen production rate gets faster to cover up the area with new healthy skin. Nonablative laser techniques are noninvasive and far more effective than the former one with less downtime.
It does not cause any impairment to the epidermal skin layer. In this technique the affected area is initially made extremely cool with a blast of cryogenic spray and this cooling process is instantly followed by a ray of laser beam. This heats up the sebaceous glands and triggers natural collagen formation thereby softening and flattening the deep acne scars from within without harming your skin texture. Dermabrasion is a method initially a local anesthetic is applied onto the affected area. Then a high-speed brush or fraise is used to sand off the top layer of the skin and modulate the contour of the scar.
While superficial keloidal scars could be removed altogether, the depressed scarred skin might get reduced in depth, shaping a smooth and fresh skin. However, this process is not applicable for all sorts of scars and sometimes aggravates the situation. For the non-white people it might cause change of pigmentation which needs separate medical care. Certain topical applications which contain retin-A and alpha hydroxy acid as key ingredients might be quite useful in improving acne as well as stimulating new collagen formation. These two chemicals help in peeling off damaged skin layer rendering a clean and healthy skin. Also a suitable sunscreen lotion is necessary to avoid sunburn on the new sensitive skin texture.
Juliet Cohen writes articles for Acne Treatment. She also writes articles for Blackheads and Acne Home Remedies.