I have ice pick acne scars. Currently breastfeeding. Is it safe to go for microneedling or TCA peel during breastfeeding?

Most procedures are not recommended during breast feeding or pregnancy. Microneedling is not recommended due to the topical numbing agent used during the treatment. TCA peels are considered medium-depth chemical peels and are not recommended during breast feeding because there have not been any professional studies done to show possible side effects or interactions. It is best to wait until the baby has weened before any cosmetic procedures.

This response is for educational and informational purposes only and is not a substitute for medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment provided by a
qualified healthcare provider.

Hi SukirtiGur

Microneedling is a medical spa procedure that has the ability to improve and rejuvenate the quality of your skin. Microneedling, particularly when combined with Plasma Rich Protein PRP has the ability to restore some of the changes associated with age and environmental exposure. These include adding and reorganizing collagen and improved smoothness. To learn more about this procedure, please visit our website.

while breast feeding or pregnant there is no restrictions on TCA or microneedling.

at home peels like cosmelan, enlighten and aerify along with dermarolling (Emerageskin roller with anteage MD AERIFY ampules weekly) should be started now (see link to emeragecosmetics).

if you have post inflammatory hyperpigmentation/melasma/discoloration that needs cosmelan or enlighten peels at home which we can do virtually and send to your home along with aerify peels regularly, vivatia foam, restorsea 10x, faith essence serum, and cosmelan 2 cream.

Acne scar treatment needs a combination approach for improvement.  For the best results, one should target the acne scar type.  As everyone has a unique pattern of acne scarring, the best solution is a tailored one.  Typically you need fillers like bellafill and sculptra for atrophic indented type scars with or without subcision.  Subcision for depressed tethered scars.  Vascular lasers like yellow laser, aerolase, excel V or IPL for redness or thick scars. And lasers such as fraxel, halo, maxi, pro fractional laser/erbium, co2 or fractional radiofrequency like venus viva, skinfinity, intensif or fractora microneedling RF for textural issues and superficial scarring.  Deep ice pick scars and narrow box car scars are best treated with TCA CROSS and punch excision.  All lasers are combined with microneedling and PRP to get even better results and improve healing times.   The majority of patients will have a collection of different scar types, and hence a tailored treatment plan is needed by an expert physician.  It is never about the laser or product that gives the results, its about the expert behind the equipment that gets you the outcome.  Scars cannot be cured and will need life-long treatments to maintain and build on the results.  For those at high risk for hyperpigmentation (darker skin types or asian or hispanic or mixed ethnicities) we already pre-treat the skin with cosmelan or enlighten lightening peels to prevent complications from energy-based or chemical-based treatments.  Best, Dr. Emer.