Fresh adult chicken pox scars, which roller should I use?

[DCLA]

Hello Sarah,
I have been doing a lot of research on dermarolling and by far you are the foremost expert on this subject! Thank you for this forum and for the excellent dermarolling guide.

I just got over a bout of adult chicken pox this week and unfortunately some of the chicken pox sores were infected and left depressed scars on my face. I have attached a few pictures just so you know what I'm dealing with here. I don't know whether to characterize them as rolling scars or boxcut scars. 

Right now I'm considering two strategies -

(1) Getting some sort of procedure like saline subcision, regular subcision or punch excision on the scars (depending on what the dermatologist recommends), then dermarolling once I've had time to recover from the procedure. 

or

(2) Just try dermarolling by itself and seeing if that will help improve the scars without any surgical procedure. 

Would you have any advice on what course of action I should try?  Also, I'm wondering if I go with option #1 whether or not it's a good idea to needle prior to the subcision/excision procedure to stimulate collagen? 

And for the particular types of scars that I have, especially the big one in the middle of my forehead, should I be using a 1.5 or 2.0 stamp roller vs. the traditional rollers? 

Thank you so much in advance for your help, I'm really bummed to be dealing with this at my age but I hope there will be light at the end of the tunnel. Thank you! 

[DCLA]

Also forgot to add that I intend to combine suctioning with whichever strategy I decide to follow, whether it's dermarolling only or some form of subcision/excision with dermarolling.

[SarahVaughter]

Thank you for the compliment!

Your scars are not yet completely healed and you should wait at least four weeks. The scars will likely still improve by themselves.

For the remaining indentations, use a 1.5 mm dermastamp with 35 needles and stamp the scars densely every three weeks. If you get no improvement after six months of stamping, add the suction pump because some of these type of scars may be tethered.

The chance that your scars improve after regular stamping is very high. If they do not, you can later consider some of your mentioned methods, such as subcision (it is expensive and there is a small risk of scarring).

Please keep us posted!

[DCLA]

Sarah,
Thank you so much for your advice. From reading the views of some dermatologists online, I was under the impression that you should treat the scar as early as possible while it's still fresh because that's when collagen production is at it's highest? Not sure if that's true or not,  but it makes much more sense what you're saying, that you should let the scar heal as much as possible on it's own before tinkering with it in any way. That just seems like a much more logical approach.   

I will definitely keep you posted with pictures of my progress. I'm hoping at the very least that the color will start improving soon, and then hopefully some filling in of the indentations. Keeping my fingers crossed! 

Thanks again!

[SarahVaughter]

I do agree that scars should be treated as soon as possible but some of your chicken pox spots are still "raw" or crusted. The injuries caused by the virus are not yet completely healed. They may still contain the virus and it is really a bad idea to push a potentially dangerous virus deeper into your skin with the needles.

You wrote "I just got over a bout of adult chicken pox this week".  It is really too early. If it heals quickly and there are no crusts, you can stamp in two weeks but not earlier. Stamping will trigger collagen production and crush the scar tissue.  Some of the spots will still improve by themselves and heal scar-free.

[DCLA]

Ah, sorry, I should have been more clear. What I meant to say,  not sure if you can tell from the pictures or not, that the crusty scabs have all fallen off and now it's just scars with that really smooth texture and dark color. 

So I'm guessing probably two weeks from now I can go ahead and stamp away. Also, should I be incorporating vitamin c serum and infadolan after the needling? 

Just trying to make preparations in advance to get on the road to recovery

[SarahVaughter]

After all scabs have disappeared, you can needle the scars two weeks from there (that is the minimum waiting time). Most of your marks will heal without leaving a scar. If you eat a diet which rich in salads and fruits, you do not need vit. C (topically or supplementation), but it would still be of benefit.

Applying a little Infadolan is a good choice for microneedling after-care.

[DCLA]

Hello Sarah,
Thank you as always, your guidance on these matters gives everyone hope including me.

I went to a "dermatologist" today just to get a professional to look at my scars in person, and he diagnosed them as boxcar type scars and said subcision would be of little benefit.  I put dermatologist in quotation signs because he then proceeded to try selling me on a $4500 CO2 laser treatment and $400 TCA cross peels to which I smiled and nodded politely, although I was figuratively rolling my eyes inside my head because I know enough about these procedures to know they're not for me.

He wanted to put me on a bleaching cream in advance to avoid hypo pigmentation from these procedures since I have darker skin. It's unfortunate with the state of healthcare in my country that doctors are now more salespeople than they are caretakers. Thankfully for forums like yours and acne.org I'm armed with information to make informed decision or else I would be out a lot of money. 

I'm going to wait a few more weeks until starting the dermastamp process, I'll keep you posted on my progress with pictures. The funny thing is when I asked the dermatologist what he thought of dermarolling, he said it was beneficial although not completely effective because there wasn't a heating element like there was with his lasers.  I should refer him to owndoc

[DCLA]

*correction to above - the bleaching cream was to prevent hyperpigmentation not hypo

[meow2]

Hi. I would like to tag on to this thread as the scars on my forehead looks exactly like DCLA.

Sarah, would you kindly advise me if a dermastamp or single needle is more suitable for such scar?

Thanks in advance for your answer. 

[SarahVaughter]

This type of scar is very likely to improve. I recommend a 1.5 mm dermastamp with 35 needles (stamp the scar densely every three weeks). If you get no improvement after six months of stamping, add the suction pump.

[meow2]

This type of scar is very likely to improve. I recommend a 1.5 mm dermastamp with 35 needles (stamp the scar densely every three weeks). If you get no improvement after six months of stamping, add the suction pump.

Sarah I'm a bit puzzled, when you say 'stamp the scar densely', you mean stamp on the scar for how many times? Sorry for being long winded..

[SarahVaughter]

Stamp it eight times. If it heals well, you can increase it to ten.

[meow2]

Stamp it eight times. If it heals well, you can increase it to ten.

Thanks for the answer Sarah. Am looking forward to receiving my orders.