Acne vulgaris, commonly known as “pimples”, is a common chronic inflammatory skin disease of the sebaceous glands of the hair follicles in young people, usually on the face, upper chest and back. The characteristic damages are blackheads, whiteheads, inflammatory papules, pustules, nodules, and cysts.
In the past, acne was erroneously thought to be a normal developmental phenomenon during adolescence, and that it would heal itself after this stage or after marriage. Delayed treatment often leads to disfiguring changes such as hyperpigmentation, hyperplastic or depressed scarring. Therefore, we should attach great importance to the prevention and treatment of this disease, both internally and externally, and combine systemic treatment with local care to treat this disease and strive for timely treatment at the early stage of acne onset to avoid lifelong regrets.
Once acne scarring has occurred, how should it be properly treated?
For the treatment of acne depression scars, fractional laser, microdermabrasion and photorejuvenation are currently available. Traditional mechanical grinding, although effective, has been less used due to the large trauma, long recovery period and unacceptable postoperative pigmentation. Fractional laser, a minimally invasive laser, can penetrate directly into the dermis by emitting a hair-thin, matrix of lasers that instantly vaporize the scarred tissue and send out a strong signal for collagen synthesis, which in turn initiates a series of skin reactions such as tissue repair and collagen rearrangement. The fresh collagen is then reproduced and regenerated to tighten the skin, reduce wrinkles, and smooth out the scar, thus achieving the effect of the treatment. This method does not bleed after treatment and has a faster recovery, so it is now used more than traditional grinding. High-energy pulsed CO2 fractional laser is now commonly used. Microdermabrasion is performed by spraying fine sterile particles onto the surface of the treatment area to loosen and shed aging skin keratinocytes, while promoting tissue development and collagen production by stimulating the skin, promoting oxygen absorption and blood circulation in its growth layer thus reducing the symptoms of depressed scars. Photorejuvenation treatment stimulates the proliferation of skin fibroblasts through intense pulsed light irradiation, resulting in the reconstruction of dermal collagen structure, thus making the scars a little lighter.
Post-acne hyperplastic scars are generally treated by local injection of corticosteroids such as Depo-Provera or Tretinoin Hydrochloride injection, or in combination with surgical excision and radiation therapy.