Erbium Yag for Acne Scars?

There are many systems used for acne scars including full field carbon dioxide, erbium and YSGG; as well as fractional non-ablative such as Pixel and Fraxel Restore; and ablative fractional such as erbium (sciton profractional), carbon dioxide and YSGG. Very confusing for docs and patients. Data is out there but difficulty is in comparing results based upon acne scars and skin types. Overall, fractional seems to be better than full field for acne scars. My preference for acne scars is the... more

For deeper or more serious acne scars, the Erbium Yag is best. The Sciton Erbium:Yag laser is used in the operating room under anesthesia as it treats the deepest layers of skin, and can achieve extraordinary results in appropriate patients. This laser can be used in darker skinned patients and produces outstanding results for acne scarring, fine or deeper skin wrinkles, enlarged pores, and irregular skin pigmentation. Healing afterwards is generally uneventful, consisting of what looks... more

There are many laser out there for acne scars.  They range from light based to nonablative to ablative to fractionated ablative lasers.  The goal is to match the tool to the job at hand.  For deeper scars it makes sense that deeper lasers will show more benefit while for shallow scars some of the more superficial or fractionated lasers will do the work nicely with less downtime.  The key is to trust in your doctor and their experience and look at their results in... more