Scar Notes Notes on acne, acne marks and acne scars, read against the published evidence.

Scar Notes: Notes on acne, acne marks and acne scars, read against the published evidence.

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New to the subject? These three posts cover the basics, in the order we would read them.

  1. 01 Close-up of a young woman's face with pink and reddish spots across her nose and cheeks Red vs Brown Acne Marks: How to Tell PIE and PIH Apart Red and brown marks left after acne have different causes, timelines and treatments. Learn how post-inflammatory erythema and …
  2. 02 Close-up portrait of a woman with freckles and visible skin texture across her nose and cheeks Acne Scar Types: How Dermatologists Classify Them and Why It Matters Ice pick, boxcar, rolling, hypertrophic and keloid acne scars form differently and respond to different treatments. Here is how …
  3. 03 A practitioner in pink gloves runs a microneedling pen over a patient's cheek Acne Scar Treatments Compared: Subcision, Lasers, Microneedling, TCA CROSS and Fillers A plain comparison of the main acne scar procedures: which scar types each suits, what published reviews show, typical session …

By topic

All topics

Acne Scars

Ice pick, boxcar and rolling scars: how they form and what can change them.

Acne Marks

The red, brown and blue-gray spots a breakout leaves, and how long they tend to last.

Treatments

Lasers, microneedling, peels and fillers, and what the studies show for each.

Adult Acne

Breakouts after school age: causes, patterns and what dermatologists offer.

Skincare Actives

Retinoids, azelaic acid, niacinamide and other ingredients with evidence behind them.

A desk by a sunny window with stacked binders, open papers and a calculator
Every post starts with the papers and guidelines listed at its end. Photo: Jonathan Cosens Photography on Unsplash

Who writes Scar Notes

Scar Notes is a small independent blog about acne and what it leaves behind. We write about the difference between marks and scars, the treatments a dermatologist may offer, adult acne and the skincare actives with evidence behind them. Every post is written and checked by the editors against published sources, which are listed at the end. Nothing here is medical advice.

Each post lists its sources at the end, numbered, so you can read the studies and guidelines for yourself. When a source is updated, we check the post again and change the date.

How we research and check posts