Dermaplaning, a Beneficial and Affordable Alternative Skin Care Treatment

Throughout the centuries, we’ve sought out ways to enhance our physical appearance. We’ve developed and applied cosmetics, created fashion trends, styled our hair, and bejeweled our bodies. In our effort to improve and beautify our appearance, we gradually added proper skin care to our everyday regimes, which included efforts to eliminate unwanted body hair. In fact, ancient Egyptians such as Cleopatra, were known to prize smooth, hairless skin, and frequently shaved unwanted body hair, as well as used sandpaper to level out scarring.

Today, we have maintained this concern with our looks, and are consistently seeking out ways to beautify our appearance, and that includes proper skin care. One method of beautifying our skin, reducing scaring and discoloration is dermaplaning. Dermaplaning is a painless, affordable and simple procedure which exfoliates the epidermis, freeing it from dead skin cells and fine hairs. Also known as Kai Sori in Japan, ‘blading’ or ‘leveling’, skin care professionals performing dermaplaning use either a surgical scalpel or dermatome to painlessly skim over the epidermis, creating soft, smooth skin, and promoting the growth of collagen.

What are the Benefits of Dermaplaning?

Our skin is the largest organ in our body. It has 3 layers, the epidermis, dermis, subcutaneous. Healthy skin is vital to our survival,and performs 6 functions: Sensation, absorption, excretion, secretion regulation and protection. The practice of dermaplaning is only concerned with the epidermis, or the surface layer of the skin.

As a result of exposure to the elements, aging and various life experiences such as stress, pregnancy, and acne, our skin may become flawed with blemishes, fine lines, scars or even age spots. Not only that, but if you’re a woman, you know how troublesome vellus hair, or ‘peach fuzz’ can be, and its negative effect on your appearance. In order to reduce the negative effects of wear and tear on the skin, many individuals undergo dermaplaning treatments. According to Dr. Stafford Broumard, Plastic Surgeon and Professor at Mt. Sinai Hospital, dermaplaning is a painless and preferred method of attaining and maintaining a healthy, glowing complexion.

The benefits of having your skin resurfaced via a dermaplaning procedure are many. Once your skin has been dermaplaned, it will be free from vellus hairs, dead skin cells, deep grime and dirt, as well as have a noticeable reduction of acne scarring. The result will be silky, smooth and rejuvenated skin. Dermaplaning also creates an environment where your favorite skin care products can be absorbed into the skin more readily, increasing penetration. Once you’ve had your skin dermaplaned, you’ll immediately notice how easily and evenly your foundation applies, how smooth it looks, and the overall sublime glow you obtain with a nice, powdered finish.

Dermaplaning provides an almost instant improvement for the skin with little or no recovery time, plus it is an affordable technique with the average cost being around $90 for one treatment. Those who suffer from unsightly acne scarring, skin tags, wrinkles, skin discoloration, skin hyper-pigmentation or simply wish to reduce the appearance of their ‘peach fuzz’, will benefit the most from this procedure.

One of the big draws for dermaplaning is that it can be performed for those individuals who cannot have chemical peels. There are many who are allergic to the chemicals in the peels, as well as pregnant or nursing women, as well as those who have a medical condition where a chemical peel is contraindicated. For instance, if you’re expectant mother and notice your complexion has turned a little dull or blotchy, dermaplaning will immediately return your natural glow, and do it without the risk of harmful chemicals entering your bloodstream.

What is the Average Cost of Dermaplaning?

Not to be confused with dermabrasion, which is a more invasive technique using a rotating instrument that essentially sands the skin down to the dermis, dermaplaning involves the use of a surgical blade or dermatome to exfoliate the surface layer of the skin.

One of the reasons individuals favor dermaplaning over chemical peels, dermabrasion or laser resurfacing is the cost, as dermaplaning is a much more affordable option. Chemical peels can run you about $600 per session, and dermabrasion can cost well over $1000, whereas the average cost for one dermaplaning session runs around $90.

However, the cost of a dermaplaning session is influenced by a few factors. These include the amount of surface area to be covered, what needs to be taken care of, how many treatments are required, and where you have the procedure performed. For instance, someone who simply needs a few lines smoothed out, will invest far less than someone who is trying to eliminate or lessen the effects of deep acne scarring. In general, basic dermaplaning can run you anywhere from $50 to $300 per session. If you decide to attend a MedSpa, and request some calming medications, then the cost will increase as well.

Can an Esthetician Do Dermaplaning?

This can be a little tricky, as it depends on the state you intend to practice in. For instance, in Florida, estheticians are allowed to perform the procedure, but in California it is considered much too invasive and can only be performed by physicians. States such as Colorado will allow an esthetician to practice, as long as they are certified.

So, if you’re interested in a career performing dermaplaning, or wish to make certain the individual performing it is certified to, simply check with your states board of education. In general, getting certified is quite easy. Once you become an esthetician, Simply sign up for any certificate course near you. These courses are usually short and inexpensive, around 6 hours, depending on the school.

If you’re concerned about who will be performing your dermaplaning procedure, then consider having it performed at a Medical Spa. Medical Spas, or MedSpas have a full time staff of skin care professionals on hand, and operate under the supervision of a medical doctor. As a Medical Spa, they are equipped to offer individuals medical grade skin care procedures, and consultation. It’s recommended that those who are nervous about having the procedure done attend a MedSpa, as they are licensed to use anesthetics, pain killers and relaxing agents.

Is Dermaplaning Good for Acne?

Acne is a skin disorder which causes an outbreak of pimples. Dermaplaning cannot be used for active acne outbreaks, it is solely for the reduction of scarring caused by the outbreaks. Individuals with active, oily acne who try dermaplaning will find that it causes severe irritation to the skin. Also, remember that any form of irritation during an outbreak, such as squeezing or picking at the affected areas can actually make future scarring worse.

However, while it cannot be used for active outbreaks, dermaplaning can reduce or eliminate acne scars. With regards to acne scarring, it may take several dermaplaning treatments before you get satisfactory results. Many individuals prefer to receive their treatments at MedSpas. Most professionals at MedSpas use a dermatome to skim over the surface rather than the surgical scalpels used for most dermaplaning procedures.

As the skin care professional goes over the top layer of your skin, removing dead skin cells, it also smooths out the scarring, much like a carpenter uses a wood planer to even out the surface of wood. This act of scraping off the top layer of skin also causes our bodies to produce collagen. Collagen increases your skin tone, evens out the skin color, and helps to make the acne scarring less noticeable.

Dermaplaning is often chosen over microdermabrasion or chemical peels for acne scar sufferers due to its positive effects and short recovery time. For instance, dermaplaning is not considered an invasive surgical procedure, it’s gentle for sensitive skin, affordable, and does not cause the swelling and redness often seen with other techniques.

What Type of Blade is Used for Dermaplaning?

In dermaplaning a blade is passed over the surface of your skin in order to remove peach fuzz and exfoliate. The more knowledgeable you are about a procedure, the more you’ll be able to take away from it, understand it’s benefits, gauge the service you receive, and that includes the tools used in the procedure. The main tools of the trade are blades, so we’ve included the more popular blades used by skin care professionals:

10S Blades

10S blades were developed and patented by BioMedic, the pioneer of modern dermaplaning, for dermaplaning only. These are extremely sharp blades constructed from surgical stainless steel, but they are not surgical scalpel blades. They are designed with a rounded tip so look a bit like your common, every day butter knife. As a result, they are quite useful when dermaplaning the delicate areas of the eyes, nose or chin. The downside to the 10S blade, is that it tends to dull quickly, so needs to be replaced often.

Number 10 Scalpel Blades

Number 10 scalpel blades are those you see which have the upward curved edge that ends in a point. It’s that point that decreases their usefulness of these surgical scalpel blades, as they cannot be used in tight areas like the eyes or nose, due to risk of puncturing the skin.

Number 14 Scalpel Blades

Like the 10 S blades, the Number 14 also resembles a butter knife. It has a rather long blade that some professionals prefer. The Number 14 comes in either carbon or stainless steel, with the carbon blade being more rigid. The 14’s stay sharper longer than the 10S and are usually cheaper, so many professionals will go with the 14.

Dermatome

In dermaplaning, a trained skin care professional sometimes uses a dermatome to plane the skin. A dermatome is a tool which looks like the typical men’s electric razor. It has oscillating blades which work to plane the surface of the skin to create an even, smooth surface. It does this by trimming down the raised ‘craters’ around acne scars.

What Exactly is a Derma Roller?

Derma rollers are an affordable, basically risk-free method of maintaining excellent skin tone and condition. Users state that with consistent use, you’ll immediately notice a positive difference in your skin’s appearance, that it will look more youthful, vibrant with a glowing complexion. In fact, derma rollers are regularly used by individuals who wish to reduce or eliminate the effects of acne scarring, as well as fine lines, wrinkles and yes, even that nightmare among all cosmetic nightmares: cellulite.

What is a derma roller? Well, it’s a hand held device, that contains a roller. This roller in turn, is covered with tiny, ‘micro’ needles, which is then rolled on the skin. These rollers come in various needle sizes, such as 0.5mm, 1.0mm, 0.75mm, or 1.5mm. As it rolls across your face, it makes small, micro punctures. When the skin experiences these punctures, it immediately begins to heal itself, and this means cell regeneration which involves the creation of new collagen and elastin, all without the need for harsh chemicals or invasive procedures.

As the new collagen forms, it actually begins to fill in the face, which results in the reduction of fine lines and wrinkles. Not only is it good for your facial appearance, but many women swear by its effects of reducing stretch marks. A final, unexpected benefit is that this treatment has been found to enhance hair growth as well!

How Long Does it Take to See Results With A Derma Roller?

Once individuals experience the benefits of the derma roller, it’s often hard to convince them to go back to harsh chemical peels and microdermabration procedures. First, this is a very affordable procedure with prices running from $30 to $50 dollars per treatment. Second, this is not a temporary procedure that only exfoliates. Derma roller treatments actually work to create a real, viable restructuring of your skin by stimulating the growth of collagen.

While most individuals can see the positive results of a derma roller treatment after one visit, those with extensive skin damage, deep wrinkles or cellulite may take 4 to 6 treatments to see positive results. Also, consider that chemical peels are not only more expensive, but take longer to recuperate from, whereas one derma roller treatment will have a recovery period of 1 to 7 days, depending on the type of roller and intensity of the procedure.

Conclusion

While dermaplaning has been around for a while, not many people know much about it, and that includes many estheticians. However, that’s beginning to change, as more and more people are becoming enlightened to this affordable, simple and non-invasive procedure. Dermaplaning benefits include the elemination of fine lines, reduction of acne scars, and little or no downtime. In fact, you can have skin as smooth as a baby’s bottom in as little as one 30 minute treatment. Not only that, but dermaplaning produces results that last as it spurs the production of collagen. If you are a fan of skin care products, then you’ll be pleased to know that dermaplaning increases the absorption rate of your favorate cleansers, moisturizers and creams. All of that dirt, oil, grime and dead skin cells put up quite a barrier, which works against penetration of facial creams. Once your skin has been resurfaced, your skin care products are able to do their job, and do it quite well. All in all, once you’ve become aware of the vast benefits of dermaplaning, you’ll be able to take advantage of its benefits and have the bright, glowing, youthful, and blemish free complexion you’ve always wanted.