Hi all,
I'm new to the boards, but not new to acne, especially cystic acne unfortunately. I've been suffering from it for years since my late teens. I'm now 36 and continue to suffer from it, mostly on my back. Through the years, some of the cysts have left behind slightly raised reddish scars, mostly on my upper back and shoulders. I also have several small, white slighty-raised scars that are roundish in shape on my back. I'm currently on Tetracycline which has been helping since I noticed that I'm not breaking out anymore on the sides of my legs, butt, and lovehandle area, which I used to alot. It seems to be working on my back, but I still get one about once a week. I tried Accutane a few times early on up until about 4 years ago, but when I start a regimen, I have to have bloodwork done to check on my liver. This usually ends the treatment because the dermatologist will urge me to stop since the Accutane appears to affect my liver. Anyway, I hope the Tetracycline will continue to work.

My questions are, anyone here have the same type of scarring on their backs as I have described, and have you sought treatment for it? I have gone to some cosmetic skin doctors back in the 90's when I was looking to have my scars treated, but at that time, I was still breaking out on my back, so I was told that no treatments can be done until my acne clears up completely. I'm hoping that day will come soon, so I really want to have the scars treated. They are truly a source of embarrassment and discouragement for me. I'm wondering what treatments will work to diminish the redness and possibly reduce their thickness.