Erbium laser or microneedling for acne scars and acne? (photo)

Acne scars can be a tough thing to treat. In my experience we have had great results with with doing a series of Microneedling treatments and alternating them with a Sublative laser treatment. The Microneedling triggers the body to make new collagen and elastin. Then the Sublative laser is a fractionated non-ablative treatment that can correct textural issues and tighten your skin which also creates collagen and elastin. By doing both procedures together and having our patients use medical grade skincare products we have great results fighting acne scars. 

This is a very important question! Microneedling is a safe and effective procedure that works incredibly well for treating acne scars. In your case, I recommend that you couple it with PRP to get the most efficient results and see a board-certified dermatologist for complete care.
 

For type skin 5 like yours I would stay away from any kind of lasers because of possible side effects. Microneedling using your own PRP works great, in my experience for acne scars. You will need 5-6 sessions and should be performed by an experienced physician since the depth of the needles is critical for good results. 

Treating your acne is the very first step- see a general dermatologist. With your skin type and scar type subcision filler- PRP and RF microneedling will give you better results than erbium or non-energy microneedling. Dr Rapaport in the US in an expert in acne scar revision methods. Acne scar revision is a sub-specialised field. For the best results, one should target the acne scar type with ideal treatments methods. Using one device is not optimal. As everyone has a unique pattern of acne scarring, the best solution is a tailored one.  The web reference below will take you to a resource to help you understand acne scar revision at a specialist level. I embedded all the videos in one page to help.

 

For example deep ice pick scars, and narrow box car scars can be treated with TCA CROSS peels, mixed scars, rolling, and atrophic scars treated with fractional devices such as Fraxel, fractional lasers, INFINI –Intensif –Intracel radiofrequency. Atrophic scars (depressions) can be treated with either fat grafts, PRP or with HA dermal fillers. Tethered and anchored scars are best treated with surgical techniques such as subcision. Other surgical techniques that we use include punch elevation, surgical elevation, punch excision and traditional excision of focal scars. Early and very mild acne scars respond well to eMatrix and non-energy microneedling, as well as vascular lasers.

 

The majority of patients will have a collection of different scar types, and hence a tailored treatment METHOD will be best. Careful examination, especially under angled lighting with scar mapping will give you an understanding of what are the best options for your scars. Additionally tactile examination or touch will give us an understanding of the amount of subdermal fibrosis, as special equipment is needed for this sub-set of acne scars.  In the majority of patients its finding the correct combination that give you best results, and everyone is unique! All the best,

Dr Davin Lim. Acne scar dermatologist specialist. Brisbane, Australia.