Why is It Bad to Have Laser Treatments if You've Taken Accutane?

Accutane affects sebaceous glands and the production of the oils in our skin. It also might affect collagen production, or the decreased sebaceous production may affect collagen production. Because this is the case, problems arise in the first 6 to 12 months after taking accutane if you have any sort of ablative procedure done (resurfacing, fractional resurfacing, micro-laser peels, TCA peels etc.) IPL procedures on the other hand are thought to be safe after about two months of... more

Accutane is known to reduce the rate of wound healing from skin injuries such as a scrape. This is the basis for the caution. In the days of dermabrasion for acne scarring (before fractional lasers), the occurrence of unusual healing after Accutane was reported. I advise avoiding full resurfacing procedures for one year after Accutane but fractional lasers for acne scarring can be performed at 3 months after completing a course of Accutane.

Accutane and other systemic retinoids have a direct, inhibiting effect on sebaceous (oil) glands. When the skin is wounded from laser, much of the healing comes from skin appendages, such as the epithelium lining the sebaceous glands. With the inhibition, you loose the major source of regenerating epithelium, and that leads to delayed healing and the potential for a scar.

It is recommended that you avoid any re-surfacing procedures including chemical peels, CO2/Erbium lasers, waxing - essentially any procedure that strips the superficial layers of skin, while on accutane and for 6 months after discontinuation of accutane. Some practitioners recommend not doing any of these procedures for 1 year after discontinuation of accutane. The reason for this is the increased risk of scarring that can occur. Other laser treatments, for example vascular laser,... more