How to Get Rid of Post Acne [Dermatologist La-Roche Posay]

What is post-acne?

It starts – these are the atrophic consequences of acne (scars or dark spots in the places of rashes), indicating the depth of skin damage, the strength of inflammation in a particular area and the insufficient ability of the epidermis to self-regenerate. The area of ​​occurrence of such traces is extensive: they can appear on the cheeks, on the forehead, on the nose, on the shoulders, back or chest, less often on the hips, buttocks.

Stagnant spots with post-acne are most often formed under the influence of the following factors:

• Prolonged moderate to severe acne: deep inflammatory foci are present on the skin for a long time, undermining the resources of the epidermis and causing irreparable damage to it.
• Mechanical damage to the skin: when trying to get rid of post-acne on their own, patients often damage the skin by squeezing out acne – a stagnant spot or scar often remains at the site of mechanical impact.

Outwardly, post-acne manifests itself in the form of stagnant spots of different colors or scars of various shapes:

1. Enlarged pores the most common traces of problematic skin after acne. Wide pores can be adjusted according to the oily type of care.
2. Red, purple or blue marks indicate vascular changes in the skin that occur as a result of mechanical pressure on the tissues when trying to squeeze out deep rashes: comedones, pimples or acne. Most often, red marks and bruises remain on the skin in patients with a predisposition to spider veins (with weak capillaries).
3. Brown spots or post-inflammatory hyperpigmentation (dyschromia) arise due to the influence of ultraviolet radiation on the injured areas of the epidermis – an excessive accumulation of melanin stains the skin in a dark color.
4. Atheromas (cysts of the sebaceous glands) and milia (whiteheads) – secondary changes in the epidermis, forming dense nodules – cysts.
5. Scars (atrophic, hypertrophic) – a natural reaction of the skin to deep inflammatory foci. Scars come in different depths, shapes and sizes, and getting rid of them is the most time-consuming and long-term process. At the site of inflammation, connective tissue arises, located in the deep layers of the epidermis.

There are two types of scars, the manifestation of which depends on the level of natural collagen in the process of healing inflammation:

• A low level of collagen in the skin provokes the appearance of an atrophic hollow scar. Such scars are round (shallowest), rectangular (deeper) and chipped (deepest V-shaped scars).
• A high level of collagen leads to a hypertrophic scar, which can subsequently grow. That is why the skin with scars has an uneven relief: atrophic scars are usually sunken, in the form of pits or craters, hypertrophic scars are convex.

The etiology of post-acne symptoms depends on the depth of damage: hyperpigmentation occurs due to epidermal injuries, while scars appear due to deep damage to the dermal layers of the skin.

Can post-acne marks go away on their own?

Post-acne spots can go away on their own, but it can take a very long time. Corrective care and cosmetic salon procedures will help to speed up the lightening of spots. Scars will not dissolve on their own and it will be more difficult to get rid of them than spots: the most effective method of smoothing the relief of the epidermis is skin resurfacing. In especially advanced cases, post-acne treatment is carried out only by clinical methods.

The speed of getting rid of stagnant spots and scars depends on the method of post-acne treatment: at home or through cosmetic aesthetic procedures, followed by maintaining a normal skin condition with corrective care. On average, the alignment of skin tone and relief after suffering acne takes from 1 to several years, depending on the intensity of post-acne.

An integrated approach (cosmetic procedures + corrective home care) is the most effective way to quickly get rid of post-acne. A course of salon procedures in combination with effective means, for example, based on acids, retinol, keratolytics, will give a noticeable positive result. But even in this case, the time costs will be impressive: unfortunately, it will not work to get rid of traces of prolonged acne in a couple of weeks.

How to get rid of post-acne on the face at home?

Stagnant spots left by acne are most often removed in a beauty parlor, but with the help of pharmaceutical cosmetics with active formulas aimed at intensive restoration and renewal of the epidermis, it is possible to significantly improve the condition of ex-problem skin at home.

How to remove post-acne with care products:

• Seboregulating products (washing gels, tonics and lotions) will help solve the problem of enlarged pores, keep them clean and prevent inflammation and new rashes in them.
• Whitening creams and serums for daily care will help get rid of pigmentation.
• Acid-based home peels are effective for any manifestations of post-acne, even out skin tone and relief, and promote accelerated cell regeneration.
• Natural clay masks also help shrink pores, control sebum synthesis and prevent new imperfections.

To lighten pigmentation, pay attention to creams and serums with components whose action is aimed at suppressing melanin synthesis: kojic acid, arbutin, glabridin, ascorbic acid, azelaic acid.

Alexander Prokofiev, medical expert of La Roche-Posay brand

The best remedies for post-acne La Roche-Posay

Corrective cream-gel against imperfections and post-acne

Cleansing foaming gel for oily and sensitive skin

Micro-exfoliating facial wash

Lotion for narrowing pores and smoothing the surface of the skin

Post-acne prevention

The main task in caring for problem skin prone to acne is not to aggravate its condition and not provoke new rashes and the formation of a permanent spot or scar on the face.

Below are recommendations from experts that will help minimize the occurrence of imperfections and blemishes from them.

• Competently and timely treat acne II and III degree;
• Do not expose stains to physical, chemical and mechanical stress;
• Avoid excessive solar insolation;
• Moisturize problematic skin well;
• Regularly wash your face with sebum-regulating anti-inflammatory drugs;
• Do not use alcohol-containing cosmetics with your arsenal (it can aggravate the skin condition);
• Use mattifying cosmetics to control oily skin.

What to do if you can’t remove post-acne at home?

If you didn’t manage to get rid of post-acne on your own, try one of the modern procedures in the beauty parlor:

• Chemical peels based on alpha hydroxy acids (ANA) – glycolic, lactic, mandelic, malic, tartaric, citric and beta hydroxy acids (BHA) – salicylic. Such peels can make scars less noticeable and even out the skin texture.
• Dermabrasion – mechanical peeling technique based on skin resurfacing, allows you to remove age spots, wrinkles, scars, scars after acne.
• Laser resurfacing helps not only to get rid of the obvious signs of aging, but also smoothes the skin texture, including spots and scars after acne. This method of dermabrasion involves the removal of the upper layer of the epidermis and the partial removal of the dermis.
• Cold therapy (nitrogen massage) is aimed at improving microcirculation, which contributes to the resorption of stagnant spots.
• Micronidling – a method of hardware cosmetology (fractional mesotherapy), which consists in the introduction of a special preparation under the skin through numerous micro-injections, as a result of which cell regeneration is accelerated and the formation of natural collagen and elastin is stimulated.
• To smooth the relief of the face, sunken scars are also filled with fillers based on hyaluronic acid, which evens out the surface of the skin.

Any peeling is perceived by the skin as a trauma. And since there was an injury and the skin was damaged, this is a signal for the urgent synthesis of new structural components in order to eliminate the defect.

Alexander Prokofiev, La Roche-Posay brand expert.

There are also clinical ways to get rid of post-acne:

1. Scar excision – a surgical operation to remove post-acne scars. The excision technique allows you to align the edges of the scar and visually smooth out visible skin imperfections.
2. Laser destruction (suitable for convex scars and dilated vessels) is a technique for correcting the condition of the skin using laser exposure.