Rosacea patient, had my 1st IPL session 4 days ago, when will I start to see results?

You can develop some dryness and peeling from the IPL for rosacea. After a week, Expect to see a decrease in redness and a minimization of individual blood vessels. Sometimes the pustules will respond and other times you will need to continue additional medication to control the pustules. We have found that continuing your rosacea treatment with concomitant IPL treatment is a helpful combination.

Our office has many different treatments for scars depending on the depth of atrophy or hypertrophy. Scars require a combination approach using our HI DEF protocol which uses a combination of lasers, topical scar modulation, and RF treatments to pixelate scars, improve contour, reduce hyperpigmentation, and improve the visibility of the scars so that they are no longer visible in ambient light. Everyone has a unique pattern of scarring and we employ our HIDEF technique to improve texture, color, contour, and topography. We often use a combination of treatments that begin with a careful examination to examine the micro texturing of the acne scars. Atrophic scars and indented scars can benefit from injectable fillers such as Radiesse, Sculptra, and Restylane with or without subcision to remove tethered scars and atrophic depression. Hyper-redness in scars can be improved with V beam laser, Excel V, BBL, IPL, and Venus RF to improve the redness and reduce the visibility of deep scars. Fractional Thulium laser and clear & brilliant can also reduce the inflammation and redness of the scar when combined with topical therapy. Fractional lasers such as Fraxel, erbium, and CO2 laser can be combined with radio frequency and also fractional RF to improve textual issues and microtopography. Subcision and TCA cross are also used for deep ice pick scars and narrow valley scars in order to improve the micro texture. Above all, our combination approach with our clinical nurses and board-certified plastic surgeons can improve the quality of your skin by using at home Melarase creams combined with PRP treatments in our office to improve your skin quality and tone. I recommend getting a formal evaluation with an experienced team of experts in order to reduce your scarring.

Finally, hyperpigmentation of scars can be improved with at-home Melarase AM, Melarase PM, and Melapads to help reduce active PIH and melanin deposition.

Best,
Dr. Karamanoukian
Realself100 Surgeon

Hi and thank you for your question! IPL is a great treatment for rosacea specially in patients with fair skin. Following each round of treatment at least 4 weeks is needed for the treatment process to complete, but it is very important to remember that for best results, a series of treatments is recommended. Following the treatment (and really always, regardless of getting any treatments or not), generous use of a high quality sunblock throughout the day is required. Also please use a good moisturizer to prevent the skin from drying and follow up with your physician. I hope it helps and good luck!  

It is not usual to experience dryness and an eruption of pimples for treating rosacea with intense pulse light. Some clients will see peeling for the first few days post treatment. In 5-7 days, you should expect for the redness and dryness to improve.  The dilated capillaries will begin to shrink with each treatment. Use of a gentle exfoliant would help reduce the dryness.   The addition of an oil free moisturizer will moisten your skin. Talk to your physician about metronidazole 1%, ivermetin 1% and potassium azeloyl diglycinate as a triple gel combination for a rosasea regimen.

Hi wzaid, Effects of IPL for rosacea may not be immediately be evident. Some cases take 2-3 weeks before results can be appreciated.You may need up to 6 rounds of treatment spaced 4 weeks apart. The cause of rosacea are manifold but some factors like nutrition and hormonal exacerbating factors can be addressed.All the best, Justin Harper, M.D.