How Can Surgery Help with Old Acne Scars?

Acne scars can be treated by multiple methods including dermabrasion, laser, and direct excision. Dermabrasion uses mechanical polishing of the skin and laser uses controlled heat energy to reduce the scarring. Multiple superficial acne scars can be made less visible by resurfacing the irregular surface of the skin caused by the scarring. Deep pits or individual scars can be improved by direct excision and plastic surgical closure.

Surgery is an invasive option for deep acne scars. Subscision in which a sharp instrument separates the scar from underlying tissue may be helpful in the appropriate patient. In addition, punch grafting and punch elevation can also be helpful in a patient who only has several deep scars. However, minimally invasive options such as laser treatments can be more cost effective particularly for multiple deep acne scars. Depending on the skin type, lasers such as fraxel, erbium and pixel... more

Subcision surgery and punch release are surgical methods used for ice pick acne scars, those type of scars are often the most difficult to get rid of. That’s probably the most effective way as well; other options are laser or dermabrasion.

Ice pick acne scars can be removed by simple micro-techniques to surgically remove the deeply indented dermal scar tissue. The procedure is relatively quick and requires sutures placed at the skin edge. The sutures are removed on postoperative day 5.