Anyo­ne who is affec­ted knows that acne is not just a cos­me­tic pro­blem. The skin con­di­ti­on can have an impact on psy­cho­lo­gi­cal and social well-being. This makes effec­ti­ve tre­at­ment all the more important. For mild forms of acne, small home reme­dies can some­ti­mes help in addi­ti­on to the medi­cal approach. The basic pre­re­qui­si­te: visit a spe­cia­list prac­ti­ce – this is the only way to make a relia­ble dia­gno­sis and com­bi­ne the right treatment.

What are the causes?

The cau­ses include an over­pro­duc­tion of sebum (skin oil), impai­red kera­ti­niza­ti­on, cer­tain bac­te­ria (e.g. Cuti­bac­te­ri­um acnes) and minor inflamm­a­ti­ons. Hor­mo­ne fluc­tua­tions, stress and a gene­tic pre­dis­po­si­ti­on can fur­ther exa­cer­ba­te the pro­blem. Are­as with many sebace­ous glands such as the face, chest or back are affected.

Which home remedy for acne?

Home reme­dies can­not work mira­cles with acne, but they can sup­port the tre­at­ment. Cau­ti­on is advi­sed with inflamm­a­to­ry forms and seve­re acne. In all cases, con­sult a doc­tor befo­re use.

• Tea tree oil (diluted): has an anti­mi­cro­bi­al and anti-inflamm­a­to­ry effect (with mode­ra­te use). Do not use on sen­si­ti­ve skin.
• Aloe vera gel: soot­hes the skin, mois­tu­ri­zes. Tip: app­ly slight­ly chil­led and allow to absorb.
• Sun pro­tec­tion and mild cle­an­sing: con­sis­tent sun pro­tec­tion and gent­le cle­an­sing redu­ce irritation.
• Diet and life­style: less sugar, ple­nty of water, sleep and stress manage­ment can pro­mo­te healing.

Important: Some home reme­dies can irri­ta­te the skin or pro­mo­te pig­men­ta­ti­on spots.

Treatment options at the Swiss Derma Clinic

At the Swiss Der­ma Cli­nic, we com­bi­ne der­ma­to­lo­gy with medi­cal cos­me­tics and the appro­pria­te aes­the­tic pro­ce­du­res. We tre­at all forms of acne, inclu­ding acne scars. Pro­ven methods include, for example

Laser therapy, Bioboost and CO2 laser

Frac­tion­a­ted CO₂ lasers sti­mu­la­te the for­ma­ti­on of new col­la­gen. Depen­ding on the skin con­di­ti­on, the laser is an opti­on for pro­no­un­ced acne scars. New and effec­ti­ve, even for sen­si­ti­ve skin, is the Bio­boost – a spe­cial laser tre­at­ment that focu­ses on skin rene­wal, skin lon­ge­vi­ty and rege­ne­ra­ti­on. Bio­boost is also sui­ta­ble for regeneration.

Microneedling

Need­ling is a tre­at­ment that is par­ti­cu­lar­ly sui­ta­ble for hea­led acne and acne scars – sub­ject to a spe­cia­list assess­ment. Here too, the skin’s own rege­ne­ra­ti­on and rene­wal are sti­mu­la­ted. Micro­need­ling in com­bi­na­ti­on with spe­cial acti­ve ingre­di­ents or PRP can impro­ve the appearance of scars and the over­all skin structure.

Dermato-cosmetic acne treatment

Indi­vi­du­al­ly tail­o­red acti­ve ingre­di­ents (e.g. reti­no­ids, anti­bac­te­ri­al pre­pa­ra­ti­ons, mild pee­lings) can be used to regu­la­te ble­mis­hes and acti­ve inflamm­a­ti­on. Der­ma­to-cos­me­tic tre­at­ment is usual­ly sui­ta­ble for mild to mode­ra­te forms of acne – and also in com­bi­na­ti­on with medi­cal therapy.

TCA peeling (trichloroacetic acid)

A TCA peel is a medi­um-depth che­mi­cal peel that impro­ves skin tex­tu­re, refi­nes pores and can even out minor scars. At the Swiss Der­ma Cli­nic, it is part of our ran­ge of pee­ling methods.

Mesotherapy

Direct injec­tion of nut­ri­ents, vit­amins and growth-pro­mo­ting sub­s­tances into the scalp or affec­ted are­as of skin. Sup­ports the local meta­bo­lism and rege­ne­ra­ti­on. Par­ti­cu­lar­ly sui­ta­ble for acne pre­ven­ti­on and skin rege­ne­ra­ti­on after acne the­ra­py.

PRP (Platelet Rich Plasma)

Here, auto­log­ous blood plas­ma with con­cen­tra­ted growth fac­tors is injec­ted into the skin. It acti­va­tes heal­ing pro­ces­ses, streng­thens the qua­li­ty of the skin and impro­ves the appearance of scars. The PRP is pre­pared in our prac­ti­ce in Zurich.

Ultrasound treatments

Cos­me­tic ultra­sound (e.g. LDM) pro­mo­tes micro­cir­cu­la­ti­on and the absorp­ti­on of acti­ve ingre­di­ents into the skin. Ultra­sound is extre­me­ly gent­le on the skin and is also sui­ta­ble for inflamm­a­to­ry acne, as a sup­ple­ment to other tre­at­ments and for prevention.

Combinations are often the method of choice

Acne and its scars are influen­ced by many fac­tors. The­r­e­fo­re, the tre­at­ment of choice is often a com­bi­na­ti­on the­ra­py. For exam­p­le:

• Laser and micro­need­ling
• PRP and mesotherapy
• TCA pee­ling with ultra­sound and cos­me­tic acti­ve ingredients

The advan­ta­ges of com­bi­na­ti­ons are grea­ter effi­ci­en­cy, shorter tre­at­ment times and fewer unde­si­ra­ble side effects. They also have a more mul­ti-face­ted effect, as many of the methods men­tio­ned impro­ve the over­all qua­li­ty of the skin, redu­ce red­ness, ensu­re a fres­her com­ple­xi­on and even smooth out wrinkles.

What effect is realistic?

First of all: Your per­so­nal skin con­di­ti­on and your requi­re­ments are decisi­ve. For exam­p­le, whe­ther your skin is gene­ral­ly more sen­si­ti­ve, lar­ge-pored or thin. Rough gui­de­lines are:

• First chan­ges, a smoot­her com­ple­xi­on, less red­ness often after about 4 – 8 weeks
• Signi­fi­cant impro­ve­ments in scars usual­ly only after seve­ral sessions
• Time, pati­ence and coor­di­na­ted skin care are essential
• Pre­ven­ti­on is important: tre­at ear­ly, don’t wait

FAQ

Does a laser also help with old acne scars?

As a rule, yes. With modern laser sys­tems, we can remo­ve scar tis­sue and sti­mu­la­te col­la­gen pro­duc­tion in the skin at the same time. As a result, the skin sur­face beco­mes smoot­her, the pores finer and the skin reli­ef more even. Seve­ral ses­si­ons at inter­vals of seve­ral weeks are recom­men­ded, depen­ding on the ext­ent of the scarring.

Can I treat my acne exclusively with home remedies?

This is not advi­sa­ble. Many so-cal­led home reme­dies dry out the skin or irri­ta­te it fur­ther. Open spots or inflamm­a­ti­on can lead to smear infec­tions – i.e. the acne spreads fur­ther. Nevert­hel­ess, the right home reme­dies can com­ple­ment the medi­cal tre­at­ment of acne, espe­ci­al­ly pre­ven­ti­on. Talk to us or your spe­cia­list about your options.

How can I effectively prevent acne?

The trig­gers of acne are indi­vi­du­al and very wide-ran­ging. They can the­r­e­fo­re only be pre­ven­ted to a limi­t­ed ext­ent. What is important is appro­pria­te and con­sis­tent skin care. Make sure you use a mild cle­an­ser and sel­ect the right acti­ve ingre­di­ents and oils for your skin. In addi­ti­on, medi­cal-cos­me­tic tre­at­ments such as Oxy­ge­neo or cos­me­tic ultra­sound can help to per­ma­nent­ly sta­bi­li­ze the skin environment.