Unsightly scratch like marks that often appear when we lose weight or after pregnancy, stretch marks are small, depressed streaks in the skin that results from the changes in the elastic supportive tissue that lies just beneath the skin. Though it most commonly appears on the abdomen, some women also get it on the buttocks, breast, and still some on the thighs and calves.
WHAT CAUSES STRETCH MARKS?
Several factors had been pointed out to cause stretch marks. On pregnant women, a weight gain of over 30lbs or around 15kg is said to increase the chance of getting stretch marks. Low maternal age, higher body mass index, and higher neonatal birth weight had also been associated with the occurrence of stretch marks during pregnancy.
Many may also notice the appearance of these marks during puberty. This is often attributed to the rapid growth during this period that sometimes results to men having stretch marks on their shoulders and women on their hips.
Rapid weight gain is also being pointed out to cause stretch marks along with yo-yo dieting.
Medical conditions such as Cushing Syndrome or the over production of Cortisol hormone, and Marfan Syndrome, a genetic disorder of the connective tissue are also possible
HOW DO YOU PREVENT HAVING STRETCH MARKS?
Studies show that genetics is one of the factors to determine if someone is prone to having stretch marks. Researchers found out that if your mother or sister got stretch marks, you will have higher chances of getting them too.
Elasticity of the skin also plays a role in forming or avoiding stretch marks but more researches are still underway to establish a way to prevent it. Creams and lotions, and other chemical formulated products available in the market may claim that they help prevent the appearance of stretch marks, but though they may help by moisturizing the skin and building up collagen, they can never totally prevent stretch marks.
WHAT IS THE SOLUTION FOR STRETCH MARKS in Thailand?
A lot of treatments are also available claiming to be able to remove stretch marks in Thailand, don’t be fooled by these adverts because up to now, there is still no treatment, be it in the form of drugs or laser in Thailand to completely erase stretch marks. With this, Yoskarn Clinic recommends treatments to improve the appearance of the area by bringing the stretch mark's color as near to your skin tone as possible. The main purpose of this stretchmarks removal in Thailand is not to remove the stretch marks but to make its color match the natural color of the surrounding skin to make it less noticeable.
For white stretch marks or for those with stretch marks that are lighter than the color of their skin, mesopigmentation is recommended to camouflage the affected area. Meso pigmentation is a procedure that is used to put some color or pigment to an otherwise discolored area. It can be used to correct scars and other localized pigmentation problems.
For stretch marks that are colored red, we would recommend a variety of vascular lasers depending on whether you have tried one system before or not. (Like all laser machines, other people responds better with other machines hence we always inform our patients that we cannot guarantee how well the treatment will work). The purpose of this stretchmarks correction treatment is again to bring the color of the stretch marks closer to the color of your skin.
For those marks that are darker than your skin tone, we offer pigment specific laser treatments to lighten it up.
Laser treatments in Thailand may take several session before you see some result, but dermatologists are more trained to see more subtle signs of improvement therefore the key to a successful course of treatment is to find doctor who will tell you the truth, if you are responding to the treatment or not, and if not, prescribe another course of treatment.
For stretch marks that appear wrinkled or corrugated, these can be improved by ablative and semi-ablative laser treatment.
Note that other centers will only have one option for you so your dermatologist will just let you do several sessions before you realize it’s not working for you and you need another treatment option. At Yoskarn Clinic, we always have several options for you as we understand that there is not a single laser treatment that will work for all patients even if their skin problems are the same.