Thanks for your question.
As with any chemical peel, it is important to know what a peel is capable of improving and what it is not. Glycolic peels are excellent peels that are performed widely and are very well tolerated.
Regarding pigmentation, glycolic peels of any percentage will help with pigmentation, but usually need to be done multiple times to see this beneficial effect. Use of glycolic peels with hydroquinone +/- topical tretinoin would be a fine starting regimen to help reduce pigmentation.
Regarding fine lines, glycolic peels should help with slight textural abnormalities over time, and would be a nice adjunct to topical tretinoin nightly. However, a non-ablative fractional resurfacing laser (e.g. Fraxel) would likely be a better choice for those fine lines, and, if those lines are in movement areas around the eyes, between the eyebrows, or on the forehead, using Botox would be a better choice.
In regards to acne scarring, my opinion is that glycolic peels do not do anything significant to reduce acne scarring. Better options would be a fractional ablative or non-ablative laser - depending on how dark your skin is, a fractional non-ablative laser may be more ideal for you.
If you decide to do the glycolic peels, start with a 20%, then increase to a 30% 2-3 weeks later. Do 30% one or two times, then increase to 50%. You can increase to your tolerace up to 70%. Keep in mind that as glycolic peels can help you reduce some pigment, they can also cause quite an inflammatory and scabbing reaction on your skin leading to more pigment / darkening. Doing 30% without scabbing multiple times is much more beneficial than doing 50 or 70% with scabbing in your case because of your darker skin.
Hope this helps.
