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Levulan Blue Light Acne Treatment Reviews
Total results: 186 Viewing page: 2 of 19
frillygirl from Alabama
May 11, 2011
| Pros | helped to draw out plugs and under the skin bumps |
|---|---|
| Cons | mild discomfort during the procedure, redness for 2-3 days, burning sensation for 2-3 days, and hyperpigmentation |
| Bottom line | Hi all! I has this tx done 1 week ago today and had some concerns to share. First, a little history-I have been fighting acne for 8 years ( am 21) and have used various topicals (duac, epiduo, Rentin A) and antibiotics (Doxycycline, minocycline) and accutane in 2008 (40 mg BID for 6 months). I am currently taking 150 mg of Aldactone which has helped with my hormonal bumps, however, I wanted to get rid of some of the scarring and pesky plugs in my chin. My dermatologist recommended this tx for me since I have very fair skin and light acne. I incubated with the levulan for 1 hour and sat under the light for 18 minutes. I had redness and stinging for 2-3 days after the treatment and then I had hyperpigmentation of the scars and some brown patches appeared. I had no peeling and am very concerned that the next tx will exacerbate the discoloration. Again, it has been a week and the hyperpigmentation still persists. The dermatologist insisted that I continue through my series of txs and wants to increase my incubation time to 1.5 hours, but I am still frightened of how my skin is going to react. If anyone out there has experienced a similar reaction, I would greatly appreciate some advice and if this hyperpigmentation will get better with subsequent treatments. Thanks for your help, and best of luck to those trying this treatment |
| Recommended | No |
| Price paid | $300.00 |
| Acne severity | light |
n1234
May 9, 2011
| Pros | -makes skin smooth -somewhat shrinks pores |
|---|---|
| Cons | -worse acne!!!! -painful -swell up like a balloon times 10 |
| Bottom line | i dont know when or if i will ever get my face back! I wish i never went through with this. i was honestly desperate. PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE learn from my mistake and dont do this!!!!!! i was told that after my face peeled i would be left with beautiful skin... however, i was left with worse acne then before and i never thought that was possible. AND THEY HURT MORE THAN EVER!! i did this treatment 2 weeks ago and went in today for a follow up... i basically got an "oh" from the doctor. The first couple days i couldnt even look at myself in the mirror. i probably got a million whiteheads all over my face and didnt even recognize myself from the swelling. i couldnt even open my eyes all the way!!! I would recommend something that works from the inside out like anti-biotics. Please stay away from levulan and blu-u!!!! |
| Recommended | No |
| Price paid | $370.00 |
| Acne severity | moderately severe |
nat527 from Los Angeles
April 10, 2011
| Pros | reduced oil production temporarily |
|---|---|
| Cons | -can't be outdoors at all the next day -long downtime -severe breakout -redness |
| Bottom line | I signed up to get 6 treatments of this, but was only able to get 4 because I reacted so badly to the fourth. My face burned so much the week of my recovery and it was just so unbearable I had to go on pain medication. My skin scabbed horribly and started breaking out more than how I initially started. It took about 2 good months before the pain completely went away. Now, 7 months after, my skin is still extremely red and scarred from the cystic acne it caused me. |
| Recommended | No |
| Price paid | $3,000.00 |
| Acne severity | severe |
Courtney from NJ
November 30, 2010
| Pros | none |
|---|---|
| Cons | expensive, didn't work |
| Bottom line | I had 6 treatments consisting of levulan with the blue light after. Before hand the ascetician performed microdermabrasion and extractions. With all this there was NO IMPROVEMENT whatsoever. |
| Recommended | No |
| Price paid | $900.00 |
| Acne severity | moderate |
Gia from SF Bay Area, California
November 10, 2010
| Pros | Less oil production. |
|---|---|
| Cons | Like most things there's downtime - expect a day in mild stinging, you break out (whiteheads ahh! and they hurt more than the actual treatment) during the course of healing, a couple days of tightness, a week or more of peeling, redness until fades. |
| Bottom line | Don't expect anything but a decrease in oil production. If you're like me it's worth what its made for: shutting your sebaceous glands up! (decrease oil production) What's "like me" ??!: Pale, insanely oily (as in every hour you need one of those blotting sheets), large pores, lots of blemishes, like if I breakout it leaves a mark every time for like a whole year or longer, scarring, recently hormonal breakouts (during PMS then clears up just in time for next PMS), some cysts (from excess oil), skin is so sensitive I can touch my face with water and I'll break out. It helped with the oiliness so I am assuming in the long run it will help with cysts, I think I will need half as many blotting papers which is awesome, I will still break out because of my hormones so I won't be completely new-blemish free. It doesn't seem to be helping with any other issue I have. Skins smoother after the peeling ends because hello I just shed a layer, but other than that there's nothing left to do but take care of it as best I can and hope that my make up for work doesn't ruin the process I just went through. One thing that bothered me was that I don't get whiteheads and I got some, maybe a dozen, and little tiny spots here and there. The white heads hurt and it was as if they were getting pushed out of my face by the treatment. But eventually it goes away. They will tell you it will help with other things like some conditions I have, but thats not what its made for so just go in knowing that you will clean the oil spills, which I think is really important to start off with. |
| Recommended | Yes |
| Price paid | $700.00 |
| Acne severity | light |
Anonymous from CA
October 21, 2010
| Pros | Helped with hyperpigmentation a little |
|---|---|
| Cons | Downtime Cystic breakouts Tiny bumps under the skin |
| Bottom line | I went to a top derm in Beverly Hills and paid for a set of 5 treatments followed by V-Beam laser spaced one month apart each. My skin has been getting worse since the start to the end of these treatment. I had mild acne and would now consider it moderate with some cysts. The doctor convinced me to keep going, but now after spending the money and the time, I regret doing it. This can work wonders on some, but to others it can be a big mistake, there really is no way to know. I followed all of the guidlines and was left with worse acne. PDT, in my opinion should be used as a last line of defense. It you haven't tried antibiotics and creams yet, try them before doing this. I did a round of V-Beam a few years ago and then again with the PDT and it really smooths out skin texture. Try the V-Beam with Smoothbeam laser first it was cheaper and the results were much better!!!!! |
| Recommended | No |
| Price paid | $3,800.00 |
| Acne severity | moderate |
koreana from Fullerton, CA
October 19, 2010
| Pros | ***It worked for a couple of months ***Have to stay in doors for 3 days and out of the sun for a week. *** Skin was less oily |
|---|---|
| Cons | *** Expensive *** Down time *** Skin builds immunity |
| Bottom line | I had around 7 of these procedures done in the 1.5 year time span. In the first couple treatments it worked miracles. I was no longer breaking out and the texture of my skin was so smooth. My fine lines and acne scars started to fade. After my 4th treatment my skin grew immune to the PDL treatment and returned to it's oily and moderate acne state. I tried 3 more times in a desperate attempt and it no longer worked on my skin. I spent so much money on the treatments and it left me hopeless. I saw an infomercial on MaxClarity and gave it a shot. I been using it for 3 months and it helped with my cystic acne and oily skin. It's a lot cheaper too! |
| Recommended | No |
| Price paid | $2,000.00 |
| Acne severity | moderate |
Anonymous from Colorado
September 9, 2010
| Pros | Acne Gone |
|---|---|
| Cons | must stay out of sun stings have to hide like a vampire |
| Bottom line | DO not go in the sun! I did and my face turned brown and scabbed. I had to have antibiotics to clear scab. Now my face is amazing no acne... knock on wood |
| Recommended | Yes |
| Price paid | $500.00 |
| Acne severity | moderately severe |
msoilyface from San Francisco
August 29, 2010
| Pros | Major improvement in skin texture, pore size and oilyness. |
|---|---|
| Cons | 1 week downtime- serious painful redness and peeling. Treatment itself is painful while the Levulan is activated by light. |
| Bottom line | Expensive, but worth it if you can afford it. |
| Recommended | Yes |
| Price paid | $1,500.00 |
| Acne severity | moderate |
Becky from Salt Lake City, UT
August 23, 2010
| Pros | Skin felt soft and smooth in the third and forth week |
|---|---|
| Cons | expensive have to stay in a dark room for three full days uncomfortable - feels like a BAD sunburn |
| Bottom line | I have struggled with ance for 14 years. I finally decided that I wanted to put an end to it. I got a Levulan treatment done 5 months ago. The first three days I had to black out ALL the windows. Even the little bit of light coming in from the windows made it burn. After the "sunburn" went away (two weeks) my skin felt really soft. I had started feeling really good. Around two months my skin starting get more acne. Then it got worse. I started getting MORE ACNE then I had before the Levulan. It also changed the type of acne. I use to have small red bumps that went away fairly fast. Now I have CYSTIC ACNE. I have WAY MORE ACNE. The acne all groups together and stays under the skin. |
| Recommended | No |
| Price paid | $350.00 |
| Acne severity | moderately severe |
Total results: 186 Viewing page: 2 of 19
