In a pioneering new treatment, acne scars are being filled with tiny skin grafts taken from behind the patient's ear.
Acne is a debilitating condition that affects about 90 per cent of young people at some point in their teens and early twenties.
The condition is caused by an imbalance of hormones, which results in an overproduction of sebum or oil. Treatments range from oral antibiotics, the contraceptive pill to regulate hormones, to mild skin peels and creams.
Acne will almost always disappear with treatment, time or a combination of both but many sufferers are left with scars.
"Over the past five years, laser treatment, which stimulates the production of collagen, has helped treatment for acne scarring," says Dr Puneet Gupta, a general physician with special interest in dermatology.
"However, for people with deep craters, even strong laser treatment is not enough. They are usually in a very visible part of the face and are hard to camouflage even with make-up.
"Dermatologists may also consider removing the scar tissue and closing up the wound with a few stitches. Unfortunately, this leaves a scar of its own."
But Dr Gupta has started using ear-skin grafts to fill the scars. Natalie Simonson, 33, was one of the first to undergo the grafts.
"My acne started when I was 18 and continued through my twenties," Simonson said. "I had painful boils on my cheeks, chin, forehead and back. My doctor referred me to a dermatologist who tried every treatment on the market. Sometimes they worked — more often, they didn't.
"Acne ruled my life. People shouted out at me in the street and I was frightened to get into relationships. I was also unemployed, because I was too embarrassed to go for interviews."
To add to her misery, when in her late twenties her acne calmed down, she was left with severe scarring. That is when she visited Dr Gupta.
"Simonson had four very deep holes on her forehead, chin and left cheek, which were not responding to laser treatment. The largest was about 4mm deep — skin grafts were the only alternative, Dr Gupta said.
"I injected a local anaesthetic into the crater and behind her ear, which is where the skin graft was coming from.
"We have to use tissue from somewhere on the face, because body skin is tougher than face skin and if you put it side by side, you can tell the difference.
"I removed the scar tissue from the crater, then peeled a tiny bit of skin from behind Simonson's ear and popped it into the crater, which was sealed with a couple of steri-strips.
"The bleeding stops within minutes and over the next few days and weeks, the new skin becomes part of the crater and fills it in up to the surface."
Simonson says: "Not only has most of the scarring gone but also the acne. I can now walk down the street with my head held high. I feel transformed."
