SCAR AND STRETCH MARK REDUCTION

Scars are the result of surgical or traumatic injury to the skin. The scar is being formed of collagen fibers within a few days or sometimes even weeks. Under normal conditions, the scar becomes paler during this period and less raised. It fades over time and eventually changes into pearl-like color. As the amount of collagen decreases, the scar also becomes thinner.

Atrophic scars occur due to a loss of tissue in the skin. A common cause of the scarring is acne or chickenpox.

See effect of treatment on the stomach.

Fractional laser resurfacing is a new method that seems to be particularly effective in treating acne scars, injury scars, and stretch marks.

Stretch marks (striae) are red-colored lines that fade over the course of time.The skin around the stretch marks becomes slightly flattened  Although the causes of stretch marks are not fully clear, it is claimed that they are a result of breaking down of elastin and collagen fibers. There are two stages of maturation of stretch marks. The initial stage is the inflammatory phase in which the lesions are red and the volumes of soft tissue decreased. The second stage is the atrophic phase in which red lines fade in size and color to a lighter shade. Seemingly, the lesions disappear, but in fact, they can be still discernible. The skin structure of the affected areas change; the skin elasticity and extensibility degrade. Furthermore, a sharp increase in subcutaneous adipose tissue and sudden intensification of skin tension also cause stretch marks . This situation occurs in pregnancy, during growth spurt, after rapid weight gain and while body building. Also, thinning of the epidermis and the deterioration of the dermal-epidermal link seem leading mechanical causes of stretch marks, which contributes to the decrease of elastin and collagen production by fibroblasts.