What happens when sensitive skin meets a home fractional laser?
Short answer
Researchers applied a home-use fractional non-ablative laser to people with self-reported sensitive and non-sensitive skin and examined the skin for 72 hours. People with sensitive skin reported discomfort more often, but the measured skin damage was mild and nearly equal in both groups, with signs of new skin-cell growth around each treated zone.
- Study
- Richters RJ, Hoogedoorn L, Uzunbajakava NE, et al. Lasers Surg Med. 2016;48(5):474-82.
- Design
- Clinical study, sensitive vs non-sensitive skin
- People
- Not stated in abstract
- Topic
- Sensitive skin
- Source
- PubMed 26875629 · DOI 10.1002/lsm.22486
Why it matters
Many people worry that a fractional laser will be too much for reactive skin. This study measured what actually happens in the skin.
What they did
- Recruited people with sensitive and non-sensitive skin using a questionnaire.
- Treated them with a home-use fractional non-ablative device.
- Assessed skin at 0.5, 8, 24 and 72 hours using clinical, biophysical and microscopic methods, including in-vivo confocal microscopy.
What they found
- People with sensitive skin reported discomfort more often.
- The damage caused was mild and nearly equal in both groups.
- Microscopy showed new skin-cell growth around and between treated zones.
What it cannot tell you
- Short follow-up of 72 hours; no long-term or cosmetic outcomes.
- The abstract does not state the number of participants or the device.
- Sensitive skin was self-reported.
Takeaway
If your skin is reactive you may feel a fractional laser more, but this study found the skin’s physical response was similarly mild. Patch-testing, as brands advise, still makes sense.
Matching devices
Devices whose published technology match this study: MimiSilk Iris and Tria FRX. None of them was the device tested unless the study names it.
Not medical advice. Summary based on the published abstract; read the full paper for detail.