Do beauty salon facial extractions prevent acne?

Beauty salon extractions are not recommended. Those pimples with pus inside the skin, are infected and inflamed already. ‘Extracting’ them releases the pus but it also causes collateral damage – acne scars and blemishes.

A much better way would be to use medical treatments such as salicylic acid chemical peels (kill bacteria, reduce inflammation, cleanse the skin, exfoliate dead and dirty skin), steroid injections (to reduce inflammation), oral antibiotics such as Doxycycline, Minocycline (to kill bacteria). These treatments DO NOT BREAK the skin barrier – therefore there will be no scarring if done properly.

Extractions BREAK the skin barrier and result in blemishes and scarring. However, I do not blame them for doing so as they have no other method as they are not medically trained doctors. So it’s up to the individual to be discerning and choose the right place and person for treatment.

The pathophysiology of acne is mutlifactorial. It involves infection/inflammation, clogging of pores and over production of sebum(oil).

Hence it's not totally wrong of your beautician to say that you need a clean extraction of the clogged pores (comedomes). However it needs to be done well (no introducing of infection), and aftercare is also important.

There are other ways to do it to achieve better results. This involves a combination of treatments and medications.

Treatments involve laser, gentle chemical peel and waterjet facials. Medications include antibiotics and vitamin A creams. Lastly, it's also important to understand your lifestyle, so that you can receive proper advise to prevent recurrence of active acne.

To add on, I’d personally NEVER go to a beauty spa for facial extractions, for the risks of infection and scarring mentioned.

I’m not quite sure what exactly the beautician meant by “blemishes”, but if she’s referring to acne scars, extractions will not get rid of them. On the other hand, acne marks (dark red, or brown coloured marks) will go on their own in about 3-6 months.

Dr Irenaeus has explained very succinctly what causes acne. Unlike what your beautician may have you believe, acne is NOT like ovaries and eggs – you do not have a set number of hidden pimples underneath your skin waiting to “ripen” and appear, which need to be extracted before they can be seen.

Clogged pores can be dealt with professionally by a doctor, through prescribing you a diligent topical treatment of AHAs and retinoid creams.

Such extractions by beauty salons are not recommended. Although extractions may help for clogged pores (comedones) and therefore may show immediate results, the risks of infection, scarring and may I add: allergic reactions are possible long-term sequelae.

The equipments used during facial may not be sterile, and non-medical grade products applied to the skin post-extraction may hinder recovery or cause allergic reactions.

It is therefore, important to have a thorough consult with a physician who has a focused interest on skin and facial aesthetics to ascertain what treatments will be most cost-effective for your skin type and acne condition.

Generally multi-modality treatments approach works best. Using a combination of:

1. Chemical peels - treat clogged pores.

2. Lasers - reduce sebum production and therefore prevention of acne. Treat blemishes (post-inflammatory redness or pigmentation).

3. Antibiotics (topical or oral) - eliminate bacteria (Propionibacterium acne) causing acne.

4. Vitamin A based creams (e.g rectanyl A or differin) -a prevent acne and treat blemishes.

Hope this helps! With warm regards.