How do I get rid of ice pick scars?

Hello, I am a 28 year old half asian/half hispanic female with medium olive skin tone. I have a scar on my left cheek....not too deep but I think it is probably an ice pick type of scar. I have several of them in the same location on my cheek.

My question is that I have been doing the aramis for collagen production and med-lite treatments for dark spots left behind from old acne and have not really seen much results. I really hate the ice pick scars I have on my left cheek but the rest of my face is fairly decent.

I was wondering if it would be wise to have the fraxel light treatment done in just that one area of my face? I have also been reading about punch excision and graphs and subincision and really don't know which route would be best for me and my ethnicity. Any suggestions? Thank you.

4 answers to “How do I get rid of ice pick scars?”

A: Improving deep ice pick acne scars

Raffy Karamanoukian, MD

Acne scars vary in terms of pigmentation, contour, and depth to width ratio. In most cases, scar revision can improve the appearance of scars. Ice pick scars can be improved by excisional microsurgery to remove the scar depth. This is usually performed in an outpatient clinic setting.

A: Fraxel and punch graft options

Mary Lupo, MD

Fraxel can be used on darker skin, but there does need to be a good pre- and post-treatment protocol to prevent pigmentation. Your dermatologist can discuss this at your first consultation. In addition, a procedure using a tiny punch tool can remove the deeper scars, then you can get Fraxel or dermabrasion for... more

A: Punch excision or grafting for ice pick scars

Otto Joseph Placik, MD

Ice pick scars are holes that travel nearly the full thickness of the skin. In my opinion, the best option is to do a punch excision and close small scars, and graft (not graph) larger scars. There is NO WAY to fill them as a solution. So I don't think you should spend your money on collagen. Fraxel will not... more

A: Ice pick acne scars

Steven Wallach, MD

There are several lasers that can possibly improve the collagen under the ice pick scars, but with your skin, you have to be careful with peels and other ablative lasers. Sometimes, excision and closure can help, and sometimes fillers can be a nice, temporary way to elevate the ice pick component.

Comments

Christine51
1 post
4 Mar 2009

Thank you very much for taking the time to answer my question. I actually have several ice pick scars in 1 general location. I had cystic acne at one time and just kept breaking out. It's the size of maybe a quarter and its all in one section (I know, very strange) Anyways, i'm not sure punch excision would be beneficial since there are several scars in one small area that need to be treated. What about subcision? Does that work? Thanks again.

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