TCA scar treatment helps improve the appearance of depressed or ice-pick scars. These scars are sunken in because the skin has lost collagen due to inflammatory acne or other injuries. The result is a “pothole” or “pit” that needs to be filled or removed.
TCA (Tricholoracetic Acid-70%) is used to help break the fiber elastin fibers that is causing the skin to become retracted and forming depressions of the skin (scars). A very small amount of TCA is placed within the scar in order to penetrate and cut loose these elastin fibers allowing the skin to be unrestricted and allowing for additional treatments to improve the depth of the scar by building up the skin from below. For the next few months other procedures are often done to buid the scar up. These procedures could involve laser collagen building, subcision (scar tissue), microdermabraion or other means.
The procedure has been performed by cosmetic physicians for many years and is well recognized as one of the most effective way to help ice pick scars. Bruising and pigmentation changes are possible after the procedure and after all the healing takes place the skin can sometimes be a slightly different color or complexion than surrounding skin. It’s possible that the scar may not completely fill in at first, although it’s appearance is usually smoother and less noticeable than before. It is possible to perform this procedure at multiple times if the desired effect has not been achieved immediately.
