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- Presentation
Acne Treatment Journey with Energy-Based Devices
Description
The speaker describes a long career treating acne and argues that acne care should focus on faster, more predictable, cost-conscious improvement because patients often want results immediately and acne can cause depression, anxiety, low self-esteem, and social isolation. He recounts his own severe teenage acne and how an early tretinoin mistake led to dramatic improvement, using that experience to emphasize urgency. The main theme is the “acne journey” with energy-based devices alongside medications rather than monotherapy. He reviews multiple modalities: blue/red light, IPL with acne-specific filters, IPL combined with vacuum, vascular lasers, short-pulse 1064 nm lasers, and 1726 nm devices that target sebaceous glands. He explains that these devices can reduce inflammatory and non-inflammatory lesions, often with minimal downtime, and may have isotretinoin-like effects in some patients, though results are variable and treatments are not cures. He also discusses acne sequelae, showing how lasers, ultrasound, microneedling, radiofrequency microneedling, and fractional CO2 can improve post-acne redness, texture, and scars, including in darker skin types. Throughout, he stresses the importance of minimizing pain, setting realistic expectations, combining devices with topical or oral therapy when needed, and treating young patients carefully so they and their families remain engaged in care.
View moreConclusions
- Energy-based devices can improve acne faster than conventional therapy, especially when used as part of a combined treatment plan rather than as monotherapy.
- Different device modalities appear to help different parts of the acne journey, from active inflammatory lesions to post-acne erythema, scarring, and textural change.
- IPL and related light-based filters can reduce inflammatory and non-inflammatory acne lesions by targeting porphyrins and, in some systems, by adding vacuum-assisted extraction.
- Vascular lasers and short-pulsed 1064 nm devices can meaningfully improve acne and associated redness, with generally tolerable discomfort and benefits across skin types.
- The 1726 nm laser approach is presented as a promising sebum-targeting treatment that can selectively damage sebaceous glands, reduce inflammatory lesion counts, and produce durable improvement over months to years.
- Clinical results for 1726 nm treatment suggest progressive gains over time, with many patients continuing to improve after the initial treatment series and maintaining results long term.
- Safety data across the presented device studies suggest mostly mild, transient adverse effects, with erythema, edema, and occasional acneiform flares but few serious complications.
- Treatments for acne scars, including ultrasound, microneedling, RF microneedling, and fractional CO2, can improve scar appearance and skin texture even if they do not erase every scar completely.
- The presentation argues that managing acne should focus on the whole patient journey and psychosocial burden, not just short-term lesion counts.
- A cost-conscious, patient-centered device strategy can improve satisfaction and quality of life, and clearer acne treatment may also bring patients and their families back for additional dermatologic care.
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