If you’ve ever had a scar, you know they’re a part of the body’s natural healing process. While they show that your skin has healed after an injury, burn, surgery, or acne, scars can sometimes be a concern when it comes to their appearance. You might wonder how long it takes for scars to heal and if there’s anything you can do to make them heal faster or look better. We’ll break down what scars are, how they form, how long they take to heal, and what treatments can help improve their appearance. We’ll also discuss popular scar therapy treatments like Clear + Brilliant, Potenza RF Microneedling, and Rejuran Healing Essence.
What Are Scars and How Do They Form?
Scars form when the skin experiences some sort of damage, like a cut, burn, surgery, or acne. To heal, your body produces collagen—a protein that helps hold the skin together. This collagen first appears as a thick, disorganized mass, making the scar more noticeable. Over time, this collagen reorganizes, and the scar becomes smoother and less visible.
Scar healing happens in several phases:
Inflammatory Phase: Right after the injury, your body works quickly to prevent infection and form a clot.
Proliferative Phase: New tissue forms, and collagen starts building up to close the wound.
Maturation Phase: This phase can last for months or even years, where the scar remodels and softens.
How Long Does It Take for Scars to Heal?
The time it takes for a scar to heal varies based on a few things, like how deep the wound is and your body’s healing process.
Minor Scars: Shallow cuts or scrapes may heal in about 2-3 weeks, but the scar might continue to fade for a few months.
Deeper Scars: For deeper wounds or surgical scars, healing could take 6-12 months or even longer.
Older Scars: Scars that have been there for over a year may take longer to improve with treatment.
While scars may never completely disappear, there are treatments that can help make them less noticeable and improve the skin’s appearance.
The Different Types of Scars
Not all scars look the same, and they can vary in size, shape, and texture. Understanding the different types of scars can help determine the best treatment for you:
Hypertrophic Scars: These scars are raised and thick but stay within the bounds of the original injury.
Keloid Scars: Keloids are larger, raised scars that extend beyond the original wound, often darker in color.
Atrophic Scars: These scars are sunken into the skin and are often caused by acne or chickenpox.
Contracture Scars: These scars happen after burns and can pull the skin tight, which may affect movement.
Scar Healing Stages
Scar healing happens in a few stages that can last from weeks to months, depending on the scar’s type and treatment. Here’s a look at what to expect:
First Few Weeks: The wound starts to heal and the scar might look red or dark. The body is busy producing collagen to close the wound.
3-6 Months: During this time, the scar continues to mature and become less visible. The texture starts to smooth out.
1-2 Years: It may take up to two years for deep scars to fully mature, and the scar will likely soften and flatten.
Treatments for Scars
While some scars naturally improve over time, there are treatments that can help speed up healing and make scars less noticeable. Here are some treatments you can consider:
Clear + Brilliant
Clear + Brilliant is a gentle laser treatment that helps with the early stages of scar healing. It targets both the scar and the surrounding skin to promote collagen production and improve skin texture. For newer scars (less than a year old), Clear + Brilliant uses a Permea laser that helps your skin regenerate and look smoother. It’s a great option for improving the appearance of fresh scars.
Potenza RF Microneedling
For older scars (1+ years old), Potenza RF Microneedling is a more intense treatment. It uses radiofrequency energy combined with microneedles to break up the scar tissue beneath the skin’s surface. This treatment is especially good for raised scars, like hypertrophic scars, and it helps improve skin texture and elasticity.
Rejuran Healing Essence
Rejuran Healing Essence is a treatment that uses polynucleotides (PNs) to help your skin repair itself and promote regeneration. It’s applied after treatments like Clear + Brilliant and Potenza RF Microneedling to boost healing and collagen production. Rejuran can improve the overall health and appearance of your skin, making scars less noticeable over time.
How Scar Therapy Works
Scar therapy is customized based on the age of the scar:
For Newer Scars (<1 year old): Clear + Brilliant Permea laser targets the scar and surrounding tissue to kickstart healing. Rejuran Healing Essence is applied afterward to help the skin regenerate and form healthy collagen.
For Older Scars (1+ years old): Potenza RF Microneedling is used to break down the scar tissue, followed by Clear + Brilliant and Rejuran to encourage deeper skin healing and improve the appearance of older scars.
Visible improvements are typically seen after about three treatments, with each session building on the last.
Who’s a Good Candidate?
Most healthy adults with non-keloid scars are great candidates for scar therapy. However, a few things can affect whether you’re eligible, such as the stage of your scar, being pregnant or breastfeeding, and your overall health. Your treatment specialist will help determine if these treatments are right for you during your consultation.
Take the Next Step in Scar Healing with Customized Treatments
Scars can take months or even years to fully heal, but with treatments like Clear + Brilliant, Potenza RF Microneedling, and Rejuran Healing Essence, you can speed up the process and improve their appearance. If you’re looking to take the next step toward scar healing, book your free consultation and get a personalized treatment plan that works for you.
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LaserAway requires a live consultation to help ensure that the treatments you select are right for you. We may contact you by call, text, and/or email to schedule your consultation, for other transactional purposes (e.g., appointment reminders, receipts, financial information, and treatment-specific information), and for marketing purposes. If you would prefer to initiate a call to schedule your live consultation, please call us at 1-888-965-2737.
By providing your information in the previous screens and clicking the SUBMIT button below, you agree to receive such emails, as well as such recurring calls and texts, which may be made using an automatic telephone dialing system and/or an artificial or prerecorded voice. Agreement not required as a condition of purchase. Texts may be sent using SMS, MMS, or RCS technology. Text STOP to stop; HELP for help. Message frequency varies. Message and data rates may apply. Text Terms. Privacy Policy/California Privacy Notice.
