Best Four Skin Treatments A Dermatologist Mom Recommends For Students

Hello, I am Dr. Jin-il Jung, a board-certified dermatologist. After the college entrance exam, many students experience a reduction in academic stress, but then begin to worry about other things. These are concerns about their skin and appearance, which they neglected while focusing on their studies. Sitting and studying can lead to a sudden increase in weight and the development of stretch marks, and many students suffer from acne or damaged skin due to lack of sleep and high academic stress. Today, as a dermatologist and a parent of a student who has taken the exam, I would like to talk about dermatology treatments and procedures that I would recommend to students like my own child.

During puberty, active hormone secretion leads to increased sebaceous glands and excessive sebum production, making acne common. Especially in the final year of high school, many students complain of sudden or worsening acne due to increased stress and lack of sleep, which exacerbate acne. You might think that now that the exam is over, acne will naturally improve once a normal lifestyle is restored. However, if acne is left untreated, excessively secreted sebum can become stagnant in the pores, causing inflammation, which can leave red marks. Furthermore, inflammation can destroy the skin, leading to depressed scars.

• Active Acne Treatment: Gold PTT For the excessive proliferation of sebaceous glands, which is the cause of adolescent acne, treatments such as Gold PTT can be considered. This is a photothermal therapy that involves deeply penetrating light-responsive gold nanoparticles into the pores, then irradiating them with a specific wavelength of laser to generate heat in these nanoparticles, thereby selectively destroying the sebaceous glands and acne bacteria that cause acne. It has been reported to have few side effects and is effective, so I would recommend it to students suffering from acne.

• Red Acne Mark Treatment: Vbeam Prima Laser Red acne marks are caused by dilated blood vessels due to inflammation. Therefore, treating these dilated blood vessels with a vascular laser like the Vbeam Prima can significantly improve them.

• Depressed Acne Scar Treatment If you already have uneven, depressed acne scars, it is necessary to combine various customized treatments according to the type of scar.

  • Laser Treatment: If the depressed areas are not severe, you can try laser treatments such as Ultrapulse Encore or Fraxel DUAL, which irradiate the acne scars with a scar laser to induce powerful skin regeneration.
  • Procedural Treatment: If the improvement effect with laser alone is minimal, the following procedures can be considered:
    • For wide, rolling scars: Subcision, which uses a needle to cut the fibrous bands pulling the skin down.
    • For deep icepick/boxcar scars: Suture-Free Punch, which uses a punch device to raise the depressed area to the height of normal skin.
  • Skin Booster Treatment: In addition, injecting scar fillers into depressed areas or directly injecting skin regenerating substances into the skin to promote collagen production, such as Juvelook skin boosters, can also be effective in filling depressed areas.

When height or physique rapidly increases during puberty, or when weight suddenly increases due to sitting and studying, our skin cannot keep up with the pace and tears, leading to the formation of stretch marks. When height or physique rapidly increases, stretch marks often appear on the calves, shoulders, and waist. When stretch marks are caused by weight gain, they commonly appear on the abdomen, buttocks, and thighs. There are red stretch marks and white stretch marks. If you see red stretch marks on yourself or your child, I recommend seeking a clinic with extensive experience in stretch mark treatment quickly. This is because stretch marks are a type of scar, and treating them when they are red yields the best results.

• Red Stretch Mark Treatment: Vbeam Prima Laser At this time, treatment with Vbeam Prima can not only improve red stretch marks but also somewhat prevent their progression to white stretch marks.

• White Stretch Mark Treatment So, is it impossible to remove white stretch marks that have already formed? In the past, white stretch marks were considered untreatable, but with the recent development of various stretch mark treatments, white stretch marks can now be treated.

  • Ultrapulse Encore Laser: Using the Ultrapulse Encore, a precise high-power laser that can irradiate only the stretch mark area, it is possible to minimize surrounding pigmentation that can occur with stretch mark laser treatment, while regenerating the skin to be similar to normal skin.
  • Skin Boosters: In addition, stimulating fibroblasts with skin boosters acts as a booster for skin regeneration, allowing even white stretch marks to be improved to a level that is much less noticeable than before.

  In particular, calf stretch marks, even white ones, are known to have very good results, so we recommend getting treatment without worry.

Lesion removal and laser hair removal are among the most common dermatology procedures students receive after the college entrance exam.

• Lesion Removal For lesions, CO2 laser is generally used to ablate the lesion cells. Shallow lesions are usually removed with one or two treatments, but deep-rooted lesions require multiple treatments. Sometimes, clinics aggressively perform procedures to remove them quickly, which can leave scars in the treated area. Therefore, it is recommended to receive treatment at a dermatology clinic with specialists who have a deep understanding of scars. After lesion removal, a regenerative tape is often needed for about a week, and after the wound heals, it is advisable to apply sunscreen diligently to prevent pigmentation.

• Laser Hair Removal In the case of GentleMax PRO which I use for laser hair removal, the hair removal works by destroying the hair root itself, where hair growth begins, thereby preventing hair from growing back. Although the treatment cost for GentleMax PRO can be somewhat higher than other lasers, it is known to be effective for difficult cases, such as hair removal for some men or cases where conventional laser hair removal was challenging, providing quick and effective results.

It is said that Ulthera Prime or Thermage FLX lifting procedures are often recommended even for young students with good skin elasticity. In my personal opinion, these lifting procedures might be a bit excessive for students who have just finished their exams. I would first recommend Botulinum Toxin for the jaw. I recommend jaw Botulinum Toxin to students who are concerned about their face appearing angular and wide. Jaw Botulinum Toxin temporarily atrophies the jaw muscles, making the face appear slimmer. It is one of the most popular procedures among students because it shows quick results and has almost no side effects.

We have discussed dermatology procedures recommended for students. We support your new beginnings, students, and hope this article helps you resolve your skin concerns.