POSTED UNDER Fractora RF REVIEWS
Fractora ruined my skin
ORIGINAL POST
Fractora ruined my skin
steelerscapsApril 1, 2017
$750
I had a fractora treatment done to help reduce the appearance of acne scars left on my cheeks from years of battling teenage acne. My scarring wasn't awful but noticeable if you were to stare at my face for a little bit and very noticeable to me, so I finally decided to do something to fix it. Went in to Cultura which I had heard was a great clinic in the area and seemed to have good reviews.
Upon arriving I was told that Fractora would be the best thing for my skin, and it would be able to take care of the acne scarring in 2 treatments AND help with the little bit of leftover PIH I had. I was estatic and decided to give it a go. Even though my cheeks were my only concern, they told me that doing a full-face treatment would be best and that it would help my pore use and overall skin appearance. (After a lot of summers in the sun my skin could've used a little rejuvenation!)
I payed for 2 treatments upfront (big mistake) and scheduled my first procedure, 2/21/17. At $750 a treatment, it wasn't the most expensive but also not cheap! The procedure itself hurt but it wasn't unbearable. I could smell my skin burning but was told that was normal. Experienced a ton of redness and some swelling post treatment but that faded after a couple of hours. All was well until I woke the next morning to AWFUL scabbing all over my face.
I was told by the drs that I would only need 3-5 days for downtime and that I would only experience "micro scabbing". Well idk what their idea of micro is but what I experienced was anything but!!
Even though I followed my after care instructions to the T, didn't pick at my scabs and let them fall off naturally, I was left with horrendous PIH and the scabs even left actual scarring behind too. I'm absolutely devastated and cry when I look in the mirror these days.
My pores seem larger (or maybe they're just the holes left behind from the Fractora machine?) my entire face just looks 15+ years older.
My dark spots are SO dark- like a purple- and for someone as fair skinned as I am, they're so obvious that makeup doesn't even cover them up. The emotional trauma I experienced from this is awful and I don't even like leaving the house these days.
I know with things like this it usually requires more than one treatment, but after the awful experience I had from the first one I doubt Ill ever get another. In the end it damaged my skin more than it helped it.
I'll be giving monthly updates on my skin journey from here on out. My dermatologist suggested I start with a .25 microneedling device and follow with a pure,organic vitamin C serum to help fade this scarring and even out the pitted scars.
Upon arriving I was told that Fractora would be the best thing for my skin, and it would be able to take care of the acne scarring in 2 treatments AND help with the little bit of leftover PIH I had. I was estatic and decided to give it a go. Even though my cheeks were my only concern, they told me that doing a full-face treatment would be best and that it would help my pore use and overall skin appearance. (After a lot of summers in the sun my skin could've used a little rejuvenation!)
I payed for 2 treatments upfront (big mistake) and scheduled my first procedure, 2/21/17. At $750 a treatment, it wasn't the most expensive but also not cheap! The procedure itself hurt but it wasn't unbearable. I could smell my skin burning but was told that was normal. Experienced a ton of redness and some swelling post treatment but that faded after a couple of hours. All was well until I woke the next morning to AWFUL scabbing all over my face.
I was told by the drs that I would only need 3-5 days for downtime and that I would only experience "micro scabbing". Well idk what their idea of micro is but what I experienced was anything but!!
Even though I followed my after care instructions to the T, didn't pick at my scabs and let them fall off naturally, I was left with horrendous PIH and the scabs even left actual scarring behind too. I'm absolutely devastated and cry when I look in the mirror these days.
My pores seem larger (or maybe they're just the holes left behind from the Fractora machine?) my entire face just looks 15+ years older.
My dark spots are SO dark- like a purple- and for someone as fair skinned as I am, they're so obvious that makeup doesn't even cover them up. The emotional trauma I experienced from this is awful and I don't even like leaving the house these days.
I know with things like this it usually requires more than one treatment, but after the awful experience I had from the first one I doubt Ill ever get another. In the end it damaged my skin more than it helped it.
I'll be giving monthly updates on my skin journey from here on out. My dermatologist suggested I start with a .25 microneedling device and follow with a pure,organic vitamin C serum to help fade this scarring and even out the pitted scars.
UPDATED FROM steelerscaps
2 months post
Minimal skin improvement
steelerscapsApril 25, 2017
My skin is still a total mess, and it's all thanks to Fractora. It's become so sensitive that nearly anything I put on it makes it red and inflamed. I'm dealing with so much facial redness in addition to the scarring and red PIE marks the fractora left behind. I was prescribed Desonide cream to help the redness and it's been 10 days, no improvement whatsoever. Still getting breakouts in places I never did before, resulting in more ugly red spots. My face overall is just a huge mess and it's so depressing...I hate even leaving the house honestly. No changes whatsoever in my acne scarring pre fractora. This was literally a waste of money and it's caused me so much emotional distress. I urge anyone looking into getting this treatment to research more thourougly than I did when it comes to the drs preforming it. Even with the research I did, it still turned out horribly. I'm now spending hundreds more in creams and facial products to try and reverse the damage fractora caused me.
Replies (12)
April 25, 2017
I am so sorry that you are going through this... I was also damaged by another RF device. Ugh :( I wanted to share with you what helped me. I used pure emu oil and organic raw honey. It did take time but, they both helped in healing my skin. I also use the truthful serum from Goddess of Skin. I found that pure organic products helped the most. For what it is worth, you have a very beautiful face! However, I do know what it feels like to look in the mirror after something like this. Hang in there and know that you are not alone. I am sending you best wishes and positive energy :)
April 25, 2017
I'm so sorry to hear that you also had a bad experience...but happy to know you're on the road to recovery!! Thank you SO much for the kind words, they truly help so much. And thank you so much for the advice- I will definitely be looking into both of those things!!
May 10, 2017
Don't do Fractora again. It ruined my face. I lost facial fat
And it ruined my neck. Waste of money mine was like 3,000.00
And it ruined my neck. Waste of money mine was like 3,000.00
April 8, 2018
I also looked worse but continued my treatments and now look better than i ever have in my life.it amazes me how everyone wants such a quick fix that they refuse the process and don't finish treatment then cry about the way they look.
November 26, 2018
LauraSim--You are a rude person. Everyone has different skin and if she says it ruined her skin--I am sure it did. If something happens to you one day I hope someone says you need to stop crying about it.
November 30, 2018
Agree! I'm currently suffering from the Fractora which I just had on Monday/4 days ago. I can't leave my house, i'm swollen and have redness that is horrible! My Rosacea is worse than ever...
December 9, 2024
Actually I own a medical practice and it's well known that Fractora, and other treatments along this line (using energy in some form to damage the layers under your skin to theoretically cause tightening, or help with scarring) can cause terrible scarring and harm to our skin. Most plastic/reconstructive surgeons that I work with no longer use these types of medical devices. I'm a very thin woman and if I lost what little fat I have in my face I'd look horrible. To Steelerscap it's been a few years since you posted this and I hope you've completely healed. You're a beautiful young woman and I pray that your skin did not end up with permanent issues. Remember you are beautiful inside and out...
December 5, 2018
Dear Laurasimonds, you Obviously haven't read the majority of the posts written about Fractora. I'm glad that you didn't have a horrible experience with the treatment...but myself and others have suffered tremendous damage to our skin. And I'm sure the majority of the people complaining weren't looking for a quick fix. It's been over a year for me and I still have deep scars and volume loss from this so called non-ablative treatment. The manufacturer was well aware that Fractora treatment could cause burns and scarring but hid it from the public. The that doctor who performed Fractora on me realized the damage that was done and said I needed fraxel laser to repair my skin. Continuing with Fractora was not even mentioned. So before you pass judgement on us, do your research.
December 23, 2018
Sorry to hear this, I had a similar (perhaps not as bad) botched treatment as well with settings to high. I found 3-4 Perfect Derma Peels with the add-on Hyperpigmentation Boost finally cured my Fractora PIH and scars/dents. . .this is a no-redness, no-pain peel. . the top layer of your skin just peels off. This got rid of my scars and terrible PIH. You peel for 4 days, with only major peeling on the 2nd & 3rd day. It runs $250 a peel. I hope this might work for you as it worked for me!
UPDATED FROM steelerscaps
3 months post
Skin still a mess
steelerscapsMay 7, 2017
Not much to update on. Pics below. Still evident scarring and a TON of PIE that is simply refusing to go away/fade even slightly. With summer coming I'm growing more upset and desperate. I've found another very highly accredited clinic and have looked into laser genesis since it's so mild to try and combat the damage the fractora has done. I will update after I begin that treatment course, if I do decide to go through with it.
Replies (5)
May 17, 2017
Any update? What did the doctor say when you told him/her about your dissatisfaction? Did you send photos? Or go for follow up?
July 8, 2017
I've added a few new updates. Not much has changed unfortunately. Still a lot of red marks, and the scarring from fractora still remains. No difference seen in my original acne scarring.
The place I went to sort of apologized I guess, although they didn't accept any fault/blame..they said my skin "just didn't respond properly", although with scars like this i refuse to believe it was anything but operator error. They have given me a couple free genesis facials but I didn't really see any results from those. May have helped with the red tone of my skin slightly but that's about it.
The place I went to sort of apologized I guess, although they didn't accept any fault/blame..they said my skin "just didn't respond properly", although with scars like this i refuse to believe it was anything but operator error. They have given me a couple free genesis facials but I didn't really see any results from those. May have helped with the red tone of my skin slightly but that's about it.
June 3, 2017
I had deep pitted acne scars on both cheeks and have done many different lasers. I did CO2 which was really tough and took 2 months for redness to resolve and 3 months for improvement but it did improve. You look much better than I did and mine completely cleared by 3 months. I did use retin a cream which comes in different strengths and would really give that a try. Works great for acne, skin and discoloration but you must be diligent with sun block. Laser genesis is good too. Hang in there and don't give up.
June 8, 2017
Any progres? It looks they will fade with time. Keep away from the sun! You look cute.
June 26, 2017
I actually had a great experience with Fractora, and had active adult acne, as well as deeper acne scarring. It did take a few months for me to see full results, however I now have no scarring, and I do not get any active breakouts, hormonal or otherwise.
Replies (25)
So sorry this happened to you!
Thanks so much, I wish you the best as well!