Dermapen Microneedling
- Sessions
- 3, about 6 weeks apart
- Downtime
- A few days of redness
- Results from
- Up to six weeks
Key takeaway
Skin can grow smoother, and acne scars softer, over the months after a course.
The needles are tiny, and the collagen that does the work is your own.
Before your visit
It suits
- Acne scars or uneven texture
- Fine lines you want to soften
- Pores that look enlarged
- Uneven tone or pigmentation
- Some scars and stretch marks
Tell your practitioner about skin cancer, keloid scarring, poor wound healing, a weakened immune system, an allergy to local anaesthetic, or chemotherapy, radiotherapy or high-dose steroids before you book.
To prepare
- Tell your practitioner about medication, allergies, active skin conditions and any recent facial procedure.
- Do not come with sunburnt or irritated skin.
- Arrive with clean skin where you can.
- Pause retinoids and exfoliating acids before and after, as your practitioner advises.
- Postpone your visit if you have an active skin infection or deep, painful, inflamed acne.
- Mention recurring cold sores and prescription skincare, including isotretinoin now or recently.
- Avoid tanning beforehand, and afterwards use a broad-spectrum SPF 30 or higher.
Every area gets its own depth
The Dermapen is a microneedling pen with a sterile, single-use cartridge of fine needles. They move rapidly in and out of the skin, leaving thousands of tiny channels that often close within the day. Each is a controlled wound, and as it heals, the skin lays down new collagen in the upper dermis.
Your practitioner chooses the depth after assessing your skin: shallow over delicate areas, adjusted for acne scarring. While the channels are open, the skin takes in more of what is put on it.
On the day
After a topical anaesthetic, as our current Dermapen protocol asks, your practitioner moves the pen across the area in steady passes. It buzzes and prickles, with some pressure. You leave pink and warm, perhaps a little tight or swollen, like sunburn, and that settles within days.
Where it can be used
- Full face
- Forehead
- Cheeks
- Around the mouth
- Chin
- Jawline
Our clinics
A skin treatment at Cocoon Canggu. 
The consultation comes first, with your doctor, before anything is booked. 
Reception at Cocoon Canggu. 
Refreshments are waiting when you arrive. 
The corridor to the treatment rooms at Legian. 
The Ubud lounge, and the rice field beyond it.
Healing, day by day
DowntimeA few days of redness
Until it settles
- Keep the skin clean and hydrated while it settles, and do not pick at dry patches.
- No makeup for the first 24 hours.
- No hard exercise, saunas, hot tubs or steam rooms for at least 24 hours.
- Keep out of direct sun and wear sunscreen every day.
- Contact us if anything unexpected develops afterwards.
For at least 7 days, keep out of direct sun and tanning beds, saunas, steam rooms and hot yoga. Makeup waits 24 hours, then mineral makeup without brushes.
Day by day
- A few hours after
Rinse with lukewarm water and a mild face wash with no beads, to clear any residual blood.
- Day 0 to 1
Pink, warm and tight, like sunburn. A hyaluronic acid product eases the dryness.
- First 24 hours
No hard exercise and no smoking. Drink plenty of water.
- First 48 hours
No alcohol-based toners, retinoids, AHAs, BHAs or low-pH vitamin C, and no pools, sea or hot tubs.
- Days 3 to 5
Light flaking may start. Let it shed, and do not pick or exfoliate.
- Days 5 to 7
The skin feels smoother as the pinkness fades.
- Every day after
A mineral sunscreen of SPF 30 or higher, even indoors.
Results
Results fromUp to six weeks
The first change can take up to six weeks to show, and new collagen goes on remodelling the skin for months. It is slow, and it can last. Skin keeps ageing, so your practitioner may suggest maintenance.
Results vary with your skin and the number of sessions. Possible complications include infection, scarring and changes in pigmentation, so depth and aftercare matter.
Questions people ask
Dermapen is the microneedling device, and Collagen Induction Therapy is the name for the process it starts.
Microneedling is an established treatment for certain acne scars, because new collagen can make depressed scars less noticeable.
Three is usual, though acne scars and older scarring can need up to five. Your practitioner plans the number with you.
Yes, and the American Academy of Dermatology notes that adding PRP may raise collagen production and can be particularly useful for acne scars.
It can, with a glycolic or Jessner peel, as well as with PRP. Your practitioner decides which suits your skin, and in what order.
