Acne Scar

Dr. Emer’s world-renowned expertise in aesthetics extends beyond his treatment rooms. You are welcomed in style to his state-of-the-art and stylish office by staff who understand your needs. Your face is assessed and photographed with skilled yet gentle hands to ensure the results you seek.

Using these advanced tools, Dr. Emer recommends procedures and explains the results you will be able to achieve. Patients are asked in advance to bring in photos they have taken at home with selfie lights to make sure their feeds are spectacular. Dr. Emer’s dedicated staff tracks progress. Results are seen/visualized in the studio, in daylight and with overhead lights. These varying types of images give your skin the best representation possible, documenting shadows and lights to determine the extent and severity of acne scarring.

Facial Redness Facial Redness: To treat facial redness as a result of acne and acne scarring, Dr. Emer uses a combination of Intense Pulsed Light (IPL) therapy and vascular laser treatments, including Yellow laser, VBeam/pulsed dye laser, Excel V, and Aerolase.

Keloid Scars Keloid Scars: Also known as “Hypertrophic Scars,” Keloids are typically thick, raised, and dark red or purple in color and are often treated with topical therapies and scar gels, vascular lasers, IPL, LED light therapy, steroid injections, fractional lasers, fractional radiofrequency treatments, and microneedling with PRP.

Atrophic Scars Atrophic Scars: Comprised of sharp-edged “Boxcar Scars” or rounded “Rolling Scars,” these sunken, pitted depressions in the skin are more visible in side or overhead light and cause shadows in the divots in your skin. Dr. Emer’s approach is a customized combination of microneedling, ablative or non-ablative laser resurfacing, microneedling with PRP, microneedling RF, subcision, dermal fillers, fat injections, collagen stimulators, liquid silicone injections, and chemical peels.

Ice Pick Scars Ice Pick Scars: Also known as “Pox Scars,” these deep, narrow, very noticeable pits in the skin’s surface do not respond well to laser treatments or chemical peels alone. To combat stubborn Ice Pick scars, Dr. Emer uses TCA CROSS or punch excision as well as a combination of microneedling RF, radiofrequency skin remodeling, peels, and injectable fillers.

Microneedling RF uses the same technique but with the added power of radiofrequency energy. Delivering RF energy into the skin increases collagen production and promotes healing, and the energy level can be adjusted according to the severity of the scars. Dr. Emer uses a multitude of microneedling RF devices to customize your specific scarring treatments, including:

InMode Fractora, a non-invasive fractional skin remodeling and microneedling device that harnesses the power of RF to treat scarring and irregularities. The RF energy goes deep into the subdermal layers to stimulate collagen production and thickening of subdermal tissue, resulting in tightened skin, improved complexion, and a reduction in pore size.

InMode Morpheus8, a deeper and more powerful microneedling RF device that can deliver radiofrequency energy 5mm beneath the skin’s surface with little to no thermal damage to the skin’s surface.

TCA CROSS is the chemical reconstruction of skin scars (CROSS) using trichloroacetic acid (TCA).

Prior to fractional skin resurfacing or ablative laser treatments, Dr. Emer will pretreat the skin with a Cosmelan Peel or Enlighten Peel to prepare the skin cells and allow for deeper penetration of the laser treatment. When used before and after the laser procedures, Cosmelan and Enlighten can also decrease the risk of post-inflammatory hyperpigmentation for patients with darker skin types.

THE LASER EVAPORATES THE EPIDERMIS

THE PENETRATION CHANNELS ARE CLOSED WITHIN MINUTES AND HOURS

RISKS: BURNS, LONG HEALING PROCESS, LONG LIGHT SENSITIVITY, PIGMENT PROBLEMS, POSSIBLE SCARRING

DURATION FOR HEALING AND FORMATION OF A NEW COLLAGEN LAYER. ABOUT 6 MONTHS

DURATION FOR HEALING AND FORMATION OF A NEW COLLAGEN LAYER. MAXIMUM 2 MONTHS

THE INDUCED COLLAGEN FORMS A NEW CONFLUENT LAYER. FAST HEALING AND MINIMAL RISKS.

Fractional ablative lasers, such as CO2 and Erbium, are stronger lasers that vaporize the skin’s surface, remodel the skin, and help to improve scarring, discoloration, sun damage, and fine lines and wrinkles in just a single treatment. These lasers use short-pulsed light energy to remove thin layers of skin, promote cellular turnover and collagen production in the treated area, and replace the ablated skin for new, healthier skin cells.

Fractional non-ablative lasers, such as

Fractional non-ablative lasers, such as Fraxel, Clear & Brilliant, and HALO, provide lighter skin resurfacing to treat textural issues and superficial scarring. When used at a low-density, these lasers have a minimal risk of hyperpigmentation and can be used on patients with darker skin types.

Microneedling RF is also safe and effective for individuals with darker and more sensitive skin because there is no heat applied to the skin’s surface.

Dermal fillers such as silicone, Bellafill, Belotero Balance, Juvederm Ultra, Juvederm Ultra Plus, Restylane, Restylane Silk, Restylane Lyft, Voluma, Renuva and Sculptra can be used to raise acne scars and give them a smoother appearance. Other filler options include natural body fat, and Volbella. This treatment, though, is typically used in combination with lasers, microneedling and sometimes TCA CROSS for optimal results. Dr. Emer will make specific product recommendations during the consultation phase based on your unique needs and skin type.

Acne scarring comes in a variety of types. For example, there can be rolling, tethered and boxcar scarring. The imaging mentioned in the earlier section allows Dr. Emer to tailor scarring treatments. Subcisions with dermal fillers break the bonds that weigh the skin down. Filler is used to stimulate collagen. This combination works best for tethered and atrophic scars.

Fat injections, synthetic matrix cells such as Renuva, stem cells and growth factors like PRP can all be used to increase volume and collagen production under acne scars, immediately lifting the scar and providing long-term structure that can improve the scar’s appearance. Here’s how it works:

Acne scars are formed when the top layer of skin is being pulled down, which creates a divot and a shadow. With subcision, Dr. Emer inserts a blunt cannula under the surface of the scar to release the top layer of the skin, which breaks up the scar and allows him to then use lasers, microneedling and fillers to minimize the depth of the divot

Some scars or so deep or broad they need a more aggressive removal that is surgical. A circular indentation is replaced with a linear scar that is larger than the original indentation, but easier to treat with lasers, peels, microneedling, and skincare.