Archive for the ‘Scars and Red Marks’ Category
Microderma- what?!
I’m sure you’ve hear of microdermabrasion before, maybe you have even had the treatment but what exactly is it, how is it helping your skin, and can it be harmful?
Microdermabrasion is a powerful machine that combines an electronic spray and vacuum and is used for advanced exfoliation. High grade microcrystal’s are sprayed along the surface of your skin helping your skin to get rid of all the excess dead skin that may cause build but and blemishes. The vacuum is used to suck up all of the debris as well as any excess oils.
Over time your skin builds layers of dead skin cells. A build up of these cells often cause blemishes because it causes the pores to clog giving bacteria a place live. Exfoliation aids your skin in removing this build up allowing you skin to breathe. Microdermabrasion is an intense form of exfoliation that has many benefits. It can help diminish fine lines and wrinkles, sun damage, and pigmentation. It can also aid in getting those stubborn blackhead. Microdermabrasion enlarges your pores and leaves your skin feeling as smooth as a baby’s bottom only smelling much better.
There are some risks involved with microdermabrasion. If the machine is used improperly it could cause hyper or hypo pigmentation. It could also cause sensitivity to the areas treated. Always look for a trained professional to perform the treatment for you and you should be safe.
Life After Acne: Dealing with the Scars
There are different approaches to dealing with scar tissue and marks associated with acne.
With all of the new technology and promising procedures, it’s easy to get lost in the process. Today we explain some of the different ways people are treating acne scars so you can know what’s available for you.
Type of scar tissue:
- Ice-pick scars- Usually located on the cheeks, ice-pick scars are tiny and deep pockets on the skin.
- Soft scars- These kinds of scars can be superficial or deep. They usually are soft to the touch and have curved edges.
- Keloids- Hardened tissue which forms as a result of an injury, naturally. A keloid can sometimes have a bubble-like appearance
- Marks or spots- Some acne sufferers notice discolored spots or marks where a lesion existed at one time. Many marks from acne will naturally fade with time.
Procedure Options:
Smoothers
- Laser surgery- Powerful, high-energy light is used to burn away dead skin. This same procedure is used to treat wrinkles and sun damage. Skin may remain pink for several months after laser surgery.
- Dermabrasion- One of the most popular procedures to remove scar tissue, but also one of the more painful. A large, rough machine is used to remove layers of skin to create a new smoother, even surface. This can completely diminish surface scars and lessen the appearance of deeper ones. Because this process is rough on your skin, a layer of scabbing will form afterwards and your skin will appear inflamed during the healing period. A risk involved in dermabrasion is having new pigmentation form after the procedure.
- Microdermabration – Less effective than dermabrasion with minimal results. This procedure uses crystals in a vacuum-like tube to remove surface skin without damaging the skin beneath. You may have to schedule several sessions before you see a difference. Be cautious of allowing unlicensed beauticians perform microdermabrasion on your skin.
- Chemical peels – Alpha Hydroxy Acids are applied to the face to gradually remove dead skin cells and leave a new layer with a healthy glow. Once the chemicals are applied, a timer is set while you wait for the dead cells to break down. Afterwards, you rinse your face thoroughly with water. Chemical peels usually take several sessions for effectiveness.
Fillers
- Collagen – Collagen (from cows or humans) is injected under the surface to fill-in areas that are depressed from superficial or deep scars. Collagen does not work well for keloids or ice-pick scars. Animal collagen cannot be used on individuals with immune disorders. Usually lasts up to 6 months.
- Fat Transfer– Fat is taken from one area of your body and injected beneath the scars to correct deep dents on your skin from severe acne. Eventually your fat gets reabsorbed into your body, so the procedure must be repeated sometime after 6 months.
Surgical Procedures
- Microexcision – Each ice-pick groove is removed and sutured to get rid of the scar. Sometimes a surgical instrument is used to lift the deep, depressed area and relocate it in a more elevated position.
- Skin grafting- One area of skin is replaced with skin from another, less noticeable area of your body usually to cover deep grooves found after dermabrasion.
- Face-lift – Some people opt to have a face lift to improve the appearance of soft scars when other methods won’t yield desirable results. A plastic surgeon can pull and lift the areas beyond your hairline to give your skin a tighter, smoother appearance. After many years, this procedure may need to be repeated.
- Keloid removal- Keloids usually are not removed surgically because if a skin is prone to keloids, the surgery may result in producing more keloids.
Careful consultation with a licensed physician is a key factor in effectively treating acne scar tissue. It’s important that you have the opportunity to express your feelings and concerns about your acne scars to a specialist who can make you make well-informed decisions. Having realistic expectations about your results will prevent disappointment and distress. When you gather as much information as you can, you are able to make the best choice about the procedure you want.
Three Ways to Minimize Your Acne Scars
Living with embarrassing acne is one thing, but dealing with the scars it leaves behind is another. Thanks to certain medical procedures, acne scarring no longer has to leave you in the dumps feeling “scarred for life.” Talk to a dermatologist you feel comfortable with about the following 3 methods that can be used to minimize the appearance of acne scars.
Red Begone With Pulsed Dye Laser (PDL)
This form of laser treatment will help get the red out of acne scars in their early phase by reducing inflammation in the area (Modern Medicine, 2006). Not only will this treatment help reduce scarring, but it will help prevent future break-outs from reoccurring. This procedure is painless and does not have any harmful side effects.
Flattening Scars Using Microdermabrasion
When scars newly develop they appear reddish in color; however, over a period of time they will turn a whitish silver color. Microdermabrasion can help bring back the pigmentation in acne scars. This procedure uses a fractional laser to stimulate the collagen in the skin, making the scarring less visible (Modern Medicine, 2006). Some patients may experience skin peeling after treatment, but the whole procedure is non-invasive.
Go Topical With Retin-A
Though scars are a nuisance, they are the skin’s way of healing itself. With topical treatments such as Tretinoin, you can reduce the inflammatory changes that acne scars cause, and help speed up the healing process. Certain side effects may occur such as itching and mild stinging. Talk to your dermatologist before starting any treatment.
If for some reason you’re unable to seek medical help for your acne scars there are other alternatives that have worked for many people. The healing properties of Aloe Vera not only treat sunburns and dry skin, but it also treats acne scars. I suggest taking the gel directly from the Aloe Vera plant and applying it to your scars. Another option is camouflage makeup. This will hide almost any imperfection on the skin including scars, stretch marks, and tattoos. This stuff works miracles!
I hope the above methods help you find the treatment that is right for you and your acne scars. After all, who needs the constant painful reminder?
What the Lemon can do for Acne
While looking for a natural treatment for pimples and acne scars, I discovered the lemon.
Actually, my grandma had told me a lot about the miracles the lemon can do for my face, so I guess the word “discover” isn’t exactly the right term. So anyway, according to this site, the lemon can help in removing pimples and scars because of its many enzymes, acids, vitamins and minerals.
You can either use it alone or mixed with other ingredients easily found at home. Honey, milk, yoghurt and almonds are stuff you can add to the lemon to produce homemade facial treatments.
The site has a few suggestions that would be worth looking into, such as their Lemon Face Scrub. Simply mix fresh lemon with cold milk and almond powder. When the mixture reaches a paste-like consistency, apply to your face and leave on for about 15-30 minutes. It will cleanse your face, remove dirt, and unclog hair follicles.
Imagine my surprise when I learned that you could also combine lemon and yogurt to produce a pre-bath gel. If you combine lemon and almond oil, the result will give you a lotion that will get rid of the bacteria that trigger sebaceous glands to produce excessive sebum. In addition, a paste of lemon juice, honey and almond oil will combat wrinkles!
I guess I now have an idea where the saying “When life gives you lemons, make lemonade” came from…
Stars with Scars
I’m not usually one to read gossip magazines or keep up with the celeb culture, but one morning last week I was sat in my doctors’ waiting room. I’d turned up 45 minutes early, so had a lot of time to kill and not much to do so I picked up one of the magazines on the table next to me.
This only served to remind me how much I hate these kinds of magazines. The pages were sprawled with pictures of celebrities not looking at their best with gloating and disparaging remarks scrawled underneath.
Despite the majority of it being absolute crap, I was a little taken aback at just how many celebrities suffer from bad skin. I suppose that I too was drawn in by the photoshopped pictures we usually see of celebs looking thin, perfect, and everything we feel we should be.
Cameron Diaz is probably the most famous celebrity acne sufferer, who has apparently suffered with it since she was in High School and has only just recently had an improvement. Others that have been noted include Britney Spears, Lindsey Lohan, Jessica Simpson, Keira Knightley and three-fifths of The Spice Girls!!! (Posh, Scary and Sporty if you want to know!). And it’s not just the girls, there’s Jerry Garcia, Bill Murray and even Brad Pitt to name but a few!
The thing that the celebs have that we don’t are expert make-up artists to hide ‘imperfections’, as well as having all their publicity photos edited to hide any spots or pimples. It’s this difference that makes us every-day people feel bad. Unfortunately, the media hold control over showing to us what they believe is ‘beautiful’, so that people are constantly self-criticizing.
Ultimately, everyone has a chance of having bad skin. Just some people are able to hide a little better than others!
Is Dermabrasion in your Future?
Forget microdermabrasion for treating acne scars. Let’s bring in the big boys. In its original form, dermabrasion is a surgical procedure performed under anesthesia in-office by a licensed dermatologist. It is used to improve the appearance of both pitted and raised acne scars by abrading the surface of your skin with a spinning rotary tool. You will see the best results if your acne scars are raised, because the “sanding” process will break down the scar tissue as it moves over your skin. As it heals, your skin will grow back healthier and smoother, and there are usually dramatic improvements in the patient’s skin.
The results are permanent, unlike other scar treatments, such as filler injections. However, the price of microdermabrasion is also in its long and often painful healing period. You will usually be prescribed prescription painkillers to manage the pain, and your skin will look and feel like you’ve suffered a major sunburn. The dermabrasion areas will essentially be large open wounds that will bleed for several days and must be kept wrapped under sterile gauze. It will take two to three months for your skin to fully heal, and you might have to go through the procedure at least once more to get the results you want (especially if your scars are of the pitted variety).
According to CosmeticSkin.com, two of the most potentially disfiguring side effects of the surgery are the potential for thicker, tougher healed skin (similar to keloids), and skin discoloration. Cortisone creams may help the thicker skin areas, and bleaching creams can lighten areas that are too dark. However, there is nothing to be done if you lose pigmentation in your skin, leaving you with permanently lighter areas on your face.
Additionally, dermabrasion is a fairly expensive procedure. IEnhance.com reports that in 2007, the average cost of a normal dermabrasion procedure was almost $1000, according to the American Society of Plastic Surgeons, and does not include the cost of anesthesia. Yet there are few acne procedures that can produce such dramatic, permanent results in only one visit to the dermatologist’s office. For those with raised or slightly pitted acne scars, dermabrasion may just be your last resort. With luck, it will be your last visit to the dermatologist’s office, ever.
Guide to Being an Old Scrubber!
I’ve touched upon exfoliators and facial scrubs in a previous post, but here I’d like to go a little bit more in depth and provide more advice.
As I’ve mentioned before, scrubs should be used fleetingly and only a handful of times each week. Unfortunately, scrubs are one of those products that can get a bit addictive – and even I am a recovering addict who has the odd relapse!
The reasons scrubs become so over-used is because they feel good and they feel like they’ve cleared the skin. After a good skin scrub you feel cleaner – but most of this is only a psychological effect. Advertising shows us animated demonstrations of exfoliators cleaning away all the dead skin and dirt, so when we use them we automatically sub-consciously imagine that happening to us.
Exfoliators are designed to remove the top layers of skin which contain dead skin cells, as well as clear pores, remove dirt and grime, and invigorate blood flow and skin regeneration. This is done by the little tiny beads that are in the cream which, when massaged over the skin, works to remove what it needs to.
The beads can be either micro-beads, or natural products such as crushed shells, kernels, or certain crystals such as sugar or salt. I highly recommend that acne-sufferers should use exfoliators with micro-beads in them.
Micro-beads are artificially created and are smooth, round balls. This makes it much kinder on your skin and far less harsh than crushed shells or kernels which have jagged, uneven edges.
So how can you get the best out of it? Well, first of all do not use it more than 3 times a week at the most. Any more and you will be running the risk of severely damaging your skin – the short terms effects are not worth the long term damage!
Use your exfoliator in the bath or shower. Wait until you have been in there for a while so that your skin can be supple, steamed and cleansed. After about 10 minutes or so, put a small amount of exfoliator into the palm of your hand – you do not need a lot. Rub your hands together gently and slightly to spread the exfoliator over both hands, then wipe it onto your skin.
Use gentle movements with the tips of your index and middle fingers to rub the exfoliator, using small circles. Be sure that any areas that are tender or have open sores should be treated very gently, but preferably not at all.
Afterwards, it would be a very good idea to have a proper cleanse as your skin will be fresh and new, and your pores will be open. Once this has finished, ensure you use a good moisturizer to put back all the goodness your scrub has taken away!
With gentle and proper use, an exfoliant can become an effective part of your skin care regime.
