Stretch Marks Treatment

Everyone at some time or the other suffers from stretch marks at various sites in the body. As the name suggests, stretch marks are due to a factor of stretch on the skin. There are various causes of stretch marks but perhaps the two most common causes of stretch marks are – The growth spurt that occurs during puberty where the body grows faster than the overlying skin and the second most common cause is the stretch marks resulting from pregnancy.

Whatever might be the cause, the basic mechanism is that there is some kind of stretch either due to the rapid growth of muscles during puberty or the stretch as a result of the expanding abdomen during pregnancy. As a result of this stretch, the interiors expand more causing a thinning of the skin because the collagen in the skin is not able to keep pace with the rapid growth of the internal milieu of the body and gives rise to lines along the direction of stretch called the stretch marks.

Needless to say, the stretch marks due to muscular growth are more common in men and are primarily seen on the shoulder area and the thighs. The stretch marks due to pregnancy are found on the abdomen of women usually towards the late pregnancy. In addition, there are some minor causes of stretch marks like steroid medications and some also some medications for psychiatric illnesses.

The stretch marks are situated relatively deep in the skin that is at the dermis level where collagen is usually found. This is one reason why the stretch marks usually do not respond to just some cream applications because no cream can penetrate up to the dermis level. The treatment of stretch marks therefore always requires some kind of a procedure to reach the dermis level.

At Elite the stretch marks treatment begins with the consultation with the Dermatologist who after analyzing the skin will come to the conclusion as to the extent of the result possible and the best suited procedure. The treatment that is best suited is the resurfacing of the skin where there is collagen stimulation to produce a smoother texture to the overlying skin.

The treatment takes almost 6 sessions for a very good result with a gap of about 45 days in between the sessions. Each session lasts for almost 1 hour and is relatively painless. There is very little downtime as there is mild redness and swelling of the treated area which may last for up to 24 hours and subsides by itself.