Microneedling

Collagen is a naturally occurring structural protein found in skin tissue cells. This protein—along with elastin—is essential in maintaining your skin’s structural integrity and elasticity.  Trouble is, our tissues produce less of these proteins with age, resulting in weakening and thinning of the skin. In short, collagen is your friend, but sometimes it acts like the enemy.

So, what can you do about it?  Microneedling!  It is a minimally invasive skin resurfacing procedure to address this very problem.

The treatment—also known as collagen induction therapy (CIT)— uses fine, medical-grade needles to create thousands of punctures in the surface skin. While these micro-wounds cannot be seen, they stimulate a healing response, allowing for cellular renewal and collagen production.  The result?  Improved skin thickness, tightness, and clarity, and it has been shown to minimize scars (including acne scars), wrinkles, poor skin texture, and stretch marks.

WHAT ARE THE BENEFITS?

The benefits of microneedling can include a reduction in the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles, younger-looking skin with fewer signs of aging. Microneedling can also have a positive effect on the appearance of hyper-pigmentation, dark spots, acne scars and stretch marks and create a fresher appearance or glow to the skin.

WHAT AREAS OF THE BODY CAN BE TREATED?

Microneedling can be used on all parts of the body — face, neck, décolleté, arms, hands, legs, abdomen, and back.

HOW IS THE PROCEDURE DONE?

First, a thin layer of a numbing cream is applied 30 minutes prior to commencing. When the procedure is ready to begin, a sterile, disposable cartridge tip containing multiple micro points is attached to a pen-like device and set to the appropriate depth based on your unique needs. Next, in a single motion, our aesthetician gently presses the pen against your skin while simultaneously gliding in one direction until the entire treatment area has been covered.

WHAT DOES IT FEEL LIKE?

The feeling associated with microneedling has been described as light sandpaper being moved across the skin. While some areas are more sensitive than others, the speed of the reciprocating microneedle tip reduces discomfort while a post-treatment hydrating gel also makes the procedure more tolerable.

WHAT CAN I EXPECT?

The procedure takes approximately 30 minutes depending on the size of the area treated.

Immediately after the treatment you will notice a bright redness to the skin. The total healing time depends on the microneedle pen setting used and the number of overlapping passes your skincare professional performs. On average, patients are red up to 2 – 4 days. Some patients heal completely in as little as 24 hours. Utilizing quality skincare products, provided by your skincare provider, can help to speed up the post-care process.

WHEN WILL I SEE RESULTS?

Patients notice an immediate “glow” to their skin. Visible changes to the skin develop over the course of several days and weeks.

TREATMENT FREQUENCY

Some patients only require a single treatment, once per year to achieve optimal results. However, it is recommended for most patients to receive a series of 2 – 3 treatments spaced about 4 – 6 weeks apart.

For patients with deep wrinkles, advanced photo-aging, stretch marks or acne scars, your skin care provider may recommend as many as 6 – 8 sessions at 4 – 6 week intervals.

PRICING

Prices will vary depending on treatments selected and the extent of skin damage addressed.

CONSIDER ADDING / PLATELET RICH PLASMA (PRP)

Microneedling with platelet-rich plasma (PRP) is one of the most popular microneedling combinations as it delivers natural growth factors into the dermis to promote the regeneration of the soft tissues.

PRP uses growth-factor-rich plasma separated from a sample of your blood to optimize the quality of your microneedling results. When the PRP is driven into the skin with needles, the plasma stimulates a higher level of cellular growth than what is possible without.

When combined, microneedling with PRP treats a broader and deeper plane of the skin to promote the reconstruction of soft tissues.