Stretch marks are the result of damaged elastin within the dermis skin layer. While harmless, stretch marks can look unpleasant and are difficult to treat. They appear as long, narrow grooves on the skin changing their colour from red in the acute stage to white in the chronic state. Dermatologist Dr Neha Sharma, Estique Skin & Hair Clinic, Gurgaon shares with Zee News Digital, the factors responsible for these marks.
They are mostly caused by rapid stretching or shrinkage of skin. Various factors contributing to their formation are:
Rapid weight gain or weight loss
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Pregnancy
Use of topical steroids
Weight training
Growth spurt during puberty
Medical conditions like Marfan syndrome
The most common sites for stretch marks are the high fat-containing areas like the abdomen, buttocks, thighs, upper arms, breasts, underarms, and shoulders. Topical treatments like silicone gels, hyaluronic acid, vitamin E, and moisturizers have not provided much success in the management of stretch marks.
Treatment modalities with good outcomes are:
1) Radiofrequency micro needling
2) LASERS – Ablative LASER – Fractional CO2 and Non-ablative LASER Erbium Fibre LASER.
Both these modalities can be combined with platelet-rich plasma to give the best results.
These 2 modalities help in rebuilding collagen and also tighten up the skin to improve the overall skin texture