Scars develop on areas of the skin that have sustained an injury as the damaged skin tissue repairs itself. The most appropriate treatment for a scar depends on its type. Acne scars result from acne; contracture scars appear on burned skin; hypertrophic scars are raised and red; and keloid scars protrude and spread beyond the wound. However, although available procedures can help make scars significantly less noticeable, the Cleveland Clinic cautions that no treatment can make a scar disappear completely.
Injection Treatments
Injections containing the steroid called cortisone can reduce the appearance of raised scars, such as hypertrophic scars and keloids, by softening them, which makes them flatten and shrink. Injections containing soft-tissue fillers -- such as collagen, fat or hyaluronic acid, for example -- can also help elevate scars that are both indented and soft, which makes them less visible. While injections have an immediate impact on improving scars, they are not a permanent solution and require subsequent treatments for continued effectiveness, notes the American Academy of Dermatology, or AAD.
Laser Treatments
Laser procedures help reduce the visibility of scars by lightening them if they are a different color than surrounding skin, or decreasing their prominence if they are either indented or protruding. Lasers, such as the carbon dioxide and pulsed dye varieties, use a beam of light with immense energy to alter the appearance of damaged skin by removing or reshaping the scar tissue, explains the AAD. Alternatively called "laser scar revision" or "laser skin resurfacing," such procedures can also reduce the burning and itching related to scars, and they may require multiple or regular sessions.
Removal Treatments
Removal procedures improve scars by removing damaged tissue, either to promote the growth of new skin tissue in the area or to replace the removed tissue with undamaged skin. Relevant treatments include chemical peels and dermabrasion that remove a surface layer of skin with a chemical or special brush, respectively; cryosurgery to facilitate the removal of an outer layer of skin by freezing it; and punch excisions and punch grafts that require cutting out small circles of skin before sewing the holes closed or covering them with regular skin. Similar to punch procedures, surgical scar revision removes entire scars and then closes up the remaining surrounding skin, and skin grafts involve covering scars and other types of damaged skin with healthy skin. Whichever removal procedure you prefer, the Cleveland Clinic recommends giving a scar at least 12 months to heal and fade naturally before undergoing treatment.
Topical Treatments
Although no evidence indicates that topical products you apply directly to your skin can contribute to healing scars, as the National Institutes of Health's MedlinePlus website points out, some can relieve certain symptoms associated with scars. For example, topical creams and ointments containing an anesthetic, antihistamine or corticosteroid drug may decrease the amount of itching and soreness you experience due to a scar. A treatment known as silicone gel sheeting, which involves a gel or ointment containing silicone, may also reduce swelling in hypertrophic scars and help prevent or treat acne scars.
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