Acne Surgery

What is Acne Surgery?
There are many different treatments out there that people might consider acne surgery. These treatments include  Acne Laser Treatment, dermabrasion, and chemical peels. While these are all legitimate acne treatments, they are not acne surgery. Acne surgery is most common on open comedones (blackheads) and closed comedones. Acne surgery in this case just involves some material removal.

Another treatment that is considered acne surgery is treatment by injection. This is used on nodules, cysts and hypertrophic scars.

Acne Surgery For Comedones
Open comedones, or blackheads, do not take much in the surgery department. In fact, you have probably removed many of these yourself while picking at your face. There is some science involved in severe acne cases about which ones should be removed and what should just be left alone.

Doctors will also use a tool called a Schamberg Extractor instead of pinching them between their finger nails. It is always better to use a sterilized instrument instead of your dirty finger nails. A doctor will just take the Schamberg extractor and press it over the blackhead to remove it. It doesn't take much.

When a doctor removes closed comedones, the whiteheads under the skin, there is another step involved. In addition to only removing certain ones that are away from inflamed and trouble spots on your skin, there is generally a very small incision made. This incision is usually just 1 or 2 millimeters and generally will not draw blood. After the incision is made the Schamberg extractor is pressed down over the comedone and the whitehead is removed.

Sometimes a doctor will entrust his patient with a Schamberg extractor and allow them to treat some of their comedones on their own. This isn't uncommon, but is usually only done if there are circumstances that prevent frequent visits to the doctor.

Treatment by Injection
Treatment by injection comes into play for cysts, nodules, and hypertrophic scars. Some patients could have allergic reactions to the medication used, so it is important the doctor ask before doing this procedure.

This procedure is pretty simple as well. It consists of an injection of medication directly into the problem areas. This can only be performed by a doctor.  Even treating these areas will still commonly result in scarring, but will hopefully be minimized by the treatment.

Prevention
After and during these acne surgery phases, prevention of further acne is important. This will commonly be facilitated by special medications applied directly to the problem area and prescribed by the doctor. In addition to these medications, the doctor should recommend minimal contact with the area by your hands, or other objects.

It is common to recommend moisturizers that are oil-free, and soaps that aren't too harsh. These preventative measures can be used before larger problems occur as well. It is always important to keep the problem area clean. The most important, and probably hardest thing to do, is to not pick at your acne. This will only contaminate more skin and make things worse for you in the end.