Is Acne Laser Treatment Safe?

Acne is bad enough, but acne scarring is, for many, a great deal worse. What is the best thing to do about it? How can you easily remove or treat acne scarring? More importantly, how safe are the methods?

The scar tissue that arises from acne treatment does so for a variety of reasons, but it is clear that the removal of the scar tissue should be done so early that it reduces problems and unsightly scarring that could otherwise remain with you for the rest of your life.

Over the years cosmetic surgeons and dermatologists have used a variety of different methods, including laser treatment to deal with acne scarring. A rather painful but popular method was the ‘sanding’ of the scar tissue, a method called dermabrasion. It could lead to considerable discomfit after the operation and could take a considerable period for the skin to repair itself.

In addition to these treatments of acne scarring there have also been chemical peels, grafting and soft tissue filling.

Laser treatment of acne has become very popular as new laser technology has come about and this treatment is widely used for a very wide variety of skin problems – everything from crows feet around the eyes to serious scarring.

It is relatively simple, unobtrusive and safe.

Apart from being non-invasive, laser treatment is also highly precise and permits the surgeon to operate with great precision on specific areas affected by acne so as to better deal with the scars.

Because it is a non-ablative procedure where the laser operates beneath the surface of the skin and through stimulating production of collagen it tightens the skin tissue, but this is not always particularly good for removing scarring itself.

There are two main forms of acne scar removal, one being the Erbium laser, which emits a precise wavelength that leaves the non-acne scarred skin completely unaffected, but removes the scar tissue.

There are a variety of lasers being used, including the Matrix, Affirm Laser Pixel Laser, Sciton laser and others.

These are mainly used for fractional laser resurfacing, which regenerates the skin around the scar tissue while impacting the actual scar tissue through the emission of light pulses.

The laser itself emits short, high-energy bursts of carbon dioxide or erbium energy focused on the affected skin. It eliminates the deep-seated damaged cells and promotes the growth of collagen, a process that continues for some months and thus helps produce “new” skin to cover the old scar tissue. This is therefore highly effective and the treatment may be required up to three times in order to take full effect.

Fractionated laser treatment handles small parts of the skin and involves tiny laser treatment that zeros in upon areas beneath the skin surface through the creation of hundreds of tiny ‘holes’. This will also help to stimulate the production of collagen and the growth of new skin tissue.

Whatever form of laser acne treatment you prefer you need to ensure you have the best advice given your own particular circumstances including the number of treatments you will require given your particular skin type, scarring severity and other issues.