Acne – microneedling or microdermabrasion. Which one?

Hi, I recently had my micro-needling at a salon. I was having two active acne on my jawline and the lady micro needled on my active acne after I restricted her not to work on them. I am worried that I might effect with a bacterial infection. Its been 6 days of My micro-needling and I started doxycycline today. As my pcp suggested me to use doxycycline for active acne. Today I noticed active acne on my skin. I am 27yrs old. I have hypothyroidism. I just used the ordinary Hyaluronic acid and niacinamide 10%+2 zinc. What is the solution to make my skin better to be acne free and scars? After micro-needling I didn’t notice many differences in my acne scars. Your suggestions would help me a lot. Request you to suggest the best things to work on my skin with a daily regimen. I really appreciate your blog suggestions which are really helpful. Thank you, Rosie

Hey Rosie –  thank you for writing!  Everyone’s questions help other people too!  Here’s my opinion on the above.

Microneedling is NOT so great with active acne.

Why?  For two reasons because the needling often aggravates the redness and pus (inflammation) with active acne, and it doesn’t prevent scars.  Also, it really doesn’t treat acne scars very well.

  1. With active acne, the microneedling often causes more inflammation because it introduces tiny wounds.  Your skin is already trying to heal the acne, it doesn’t need more to heal. Much better would be to treat the acne itself more vigorously and aggressively.  You may need your primary care doctor or a dermatologist to help you.  For example, an antibiotic gel like Clindamycin may be helpful, or a short course of an oral antibiotic.  There are many other options.
  2. The microneedling doesn’t prevent scars from acne.  The only way to prevent acne scars from inflammatory acne, is to get the acne under really good control.  Some types of acne don’t cause scars because it’s a more mild form.
  3. Microneedling doesn’t treat existing scars very well.  I know……you see all these amazing photos on the web, but often the lighting is different, sometimes the photos are photoshopped, the patient may have had other procedures also, etc.  Studies have shown that it’s not very effective.

Here are some effective OTC skincare products that may help.  Again…..you may need your doctor to help you!

Microdermabrasion (MDA) IS very helpful with acne.

Why?  Because it exfoliates the dead skin cells off that plug your pores.  And because it has a tiny suction device (think tiny painless vacuum cleaner) that deep cleans pores in a way a brush or exfoliant can’t. Also infusions can be done at the same time.  Microdermabrasion can be done with active acne as long as the acne is being treated with topical or oral agents.

  1.  Acne is caused by plugs in the pores.  For example, if the plug is very superficial you get a blackhead or white head and not much redness or swelling.  The deeper the plug, the more the inflammation, pus, and potential for scarring.  When you exfoliate and suction the pores out well, it improves the drainage of that pore and makes your topical medications, cleansers, etc. penetrate better.
  2. The MDA tip feels like a cat’s tongue or mild scrub.  It removes the dead skin very thoroughly.  Dead skin combines with the oil in pores to create the plug.
  3. Keeping the pores cleaned out and using your topical medications, reduces the bacteria counts on skin.  We all have good bacteria too, but you don’t want the acne-causing one proprioni bacteria to overgrow because it creates more inflammation and more potential for scarring.

Keeping your diet healthy by avoiding junk food and inflammatory foods really helps too!

Hope this helps!
Dr. Brandith Irwin
Founder, SkinTour
Director, Madison Skin & Laser Center
Follow my skin tips and travels on Instagram!
Dr. Brandith Irwin, MD

Ask me your skincare question!

Hi, I’m Dr. Irwin. I believe that consumers deserve a medically trained and unbiased skin care advocate.

  • All our content is written and researched by myself.
  • My medical office in Seattle has treated thousands of patients for 15+ years.
  • This site is not affiliated or financially tied to any product, treatment or device.
Ask Me Something
SkinTour Skincare
One of the best investments in your skin is your daily skincare. Why? Because you can prevent many problems with blotchy skin color, lack of glow, texture, some types of acne, and fine lines with good skincare products. You can also correct some of these problems with effective skincare products. Great skincare is often more expensive because quality ingredients are expensive. Some companies spend on research/development which benefits all of us and adds to the cost. Are they worth it? In general - yes! I have handpicked some of what I consider to be the best skin care products, and offer them for sale on SkinTour's shop. This is based on my team and I's testing and research at our clinic. Many of the products are in my own regimen. What could be better than using skin care products a dermatologist uses?!