Julia B. 
Statistics say almost 85% of adolescents and adults throughout the world face acne, the most devastating skin disorder. While most of them get cured without leaving behind any trace, some unfortunate ones bear the agony of disfiguring acne scars. With the quantum leap of medical science scientists have developed a number of curable treatments for acne scars.
Postinflammatory Acne Scar Cure
In most of the cases acne lesions get cured unnoticed leaving behind a trace of hyperpigmented or reddish marks on the skin. In a true sense these are not acne scars, rather postinflammatory changes initiated by our skin’s natural healing process which takes about 6 to 12 months to bring itself back to its normal healthy state, provided there is no more acne lesions erupted in that region. However, if any pigmentation or disfigurement persists for more than 1 year, it could be considered as an acne scar.
Prevention and Cure for Early Acne Scar
Prevention is better than cure—this famous adage is quite relevant to handle postinflammatory changes caused by acne. As soon as you notice the first sign of acne outbreaks take necessary precautionary measures to remove them root and branch. Early stage mild lesions could be healed easily with the help of numerous topical over-the-counter products or home remedies.
You might follow some very simple defensive measures to avoid the formation of any red marks due to skin’s natural remodeling process. These measures would help you to speed up the healing process, thereby diminishing the likelihood of any postinflammatory changes to take place. Always use appropriate sun screen lotion to protect your skin from undue sun damage which might delay the healing process. Using appropriate formulations of tretinoin, alpha-hydroxy acids, and beta-hydroxy acids help to accelerate the repairing process and heal any red stain caused by acne. You might also see a doctor to ensure whether whatever you are following as acne treatment is the best one for you.
Types of Acne Scar and Cure
Based on the appearance acne scars are categorized as icepick, rolling, and boxcar. Icepick scars are sharp and narrow which usually extend up to deep subcutaneous layer. Rolling scars form due the tethering of top layer of the skin to the deep dermal tissue giving rise to an undulating shape. Boxcar scars are round to oval dentations over the skin.
There are numerous acne scar cures available to rectify the disfigurement. Each individual procedure is applicable for specific type of scar and each one have its own disadvantages.
Dermal fillers: This type of acne scar treatment involves several types of injectable fillers to lift up the depressed surface area. Skin specialists often use autologous fat, purifies bovine collagen, hyaluronic acid, and polytheyl-methacrylate microspheres with collagen. Dermal filler method is quite useful to repair boxcar acne scar. However, in the long run these fillers are used up by human body and therefore it does not provide permanent solution for acne scars and needs to be repeated after every few months.
Punch excision: This acne scar cure method employs surgical techniques to repair deep scars like icepick and boxcar. In this method a unique tool, called punch biopsy, is used to do the excision. This tool is like a sharp “cookie cutter” having a diameter around 1.5 to 3.5 mm. The size could be well matched with the deep shallow area so that the whole area could be easily excised. After the removal of the damaged area the edges of the scar are sutured. Eventually the joined area gets healed up rendering a fresh and healthy skin. However, in some cases the treatment procedure gives rise to a new scar which might not be noticeable for others.
Punch elevation: This is another acne scar cure which involves repairing of disfigurement caused by deep shallow boxcar scars through surgical procedures. The same punch biopsy, as in “punch excision” method, is generally used to excise the base of the scar without removing its sides. Then the base skin is sutured with the edges of the dent. The main advantage of this method is it does not possess the chance to produce a new scar as could be seen in “punch excision” procedure.
Subcutaneous incision: This invasive acne scar cure is immensely useful to heal rolling scar. In this procedure a unique needle is used to release the dermis from the underlying subcutaneous tissue band. This whole process might cause bruising, bleeding, and formation of subcutaneous nodules which could be treated with proper bandaging, topical medications, and corticosteroid injections.
Laser treatment: This is the most popular and successful treatment procedure for acne scar removal. There are mainly two types of laser treatment: ablative or resurfacing and nonablative. While resurfacing laser technique is invasive in nature, the later acne scar cure is noninvasive and more effective in some cases. Both of the techniques are aimed at removing the scarred skin, rejuvenating the natural collagen formation, thereby fixing the contour of the skin and restoring a new healthy and glowing skin within a very short period.
