I am also interested in this, as I posted a question on TNS growth factor a few weeks ago and received no responses.

My aesthetician seems to be quite sold on the product, as she uses it herself and has used it in others seeking scar improvement, and believes it is very effective and helpful. But she also uses it in conjunction with a retin-a product, moisturizer and sunscreen, not by itself. And only 5 days after rolling, so it is not something met to be absorbed immediately into the skin after a dermarolling treatment. Apparently, it accelerates healing which may not have a beneficial effect immediately after rolling. And when I called SkinMedica about TNS, the person I spoke with mentioned that it is not recommended to be used immeddiately after rolling.

The main criticism about TNS is that there is very little research results with regards to growth factors, and the available research on TNS results were conducted by SkinMedica, which produces TNS Serum. However, there are also other companies that have growth factor serums. The main "pitch" is that TNS has about 100 different growth factors in their serum, while others products may concentrate on just a few factors. I did read one critique where a seemingly knowledgable persons says that the molecules in the growth factors are too large to be absorbed through the skin, so it is unable to get to where it could do the most good. He, therefore, concluded that it would be ineffective. I have also read that it included "parabans", which are pretty much universal preservative-type products.

In my area of western Ohio I have only found 2 places that do some type of derma needling: one uses the dermaroller and the other uses the dermapen, and both are about 100 miles away. However, both incorporate TNS into the suggested topicals- but not manditory. Since I was given the bottle for free with the " 3 timers" package, I decided to use it. It has been about 6 weeks now and with 2 dermarolling sessions (5 weeks apart) my wife has noticed some improvement. I would not say that it is definitely from the TNS serum, though. I may yet switch to a C & E serum to replace it, but my aesthetician thought that would not be as good of a choice as TNS.

In my mind, TNS serum is an after thought for scar treatment that MAY have some positive effects. The main issue would be the neeedling, and then appropriate topicals and vitamins to support the healing and development of collagen.

Hi John, thank you for your informative reply!

I am sorry that you got no reply for your thread, the problem with this forum is that there arent many people who have something to say to this topic because growth factors are quite new and those who do dont sign in often...

I do believe the growth factors could have some effect, it is supported by scientific research anyway...

I wonder if it should be really used 5 or more days after the dermarolling treatment... My understanding was that it would actually be beneficial to use it immediately after the treatment as that way it can penetrate deeper to your dermis and have more effect... And indeed a lot of dermatologists do use it straight after the treatment (e.g. Dermaheal Stem Crum or AQ Skin Solutions)... Maybe TNS is not meant to be used like that if they say so... Its true that for example Neocutis states clearly it shoudlnt be used on damaged skin...

The reserch is scarce indeed. Thats something that I really dont like about these companies... I was looking for the research papers at every site of every product I mentioned... They hardly have any... They state some facts but they dont even list their sources, just horrible... This is not how science is supposed to be done.

To my knowledge the only particular serum that is supported by somewhat substancial research is Lifeline Skin Care... But that one doesnt have special reviews online plus I dont like that they have so many ingredients in it... On the other hand for example AQ Skin Solutions has quite good reviews but its hard to say if its not scam cause their website looks rather funny when it comes to research. All in all its very puzzling, thats why I wanted to know opinions here.

And yes, you are right, growth factors are usually proteins and those always have a hard time to make it to the dermis.. On the other hand the general research shows that they might have some effect so why not to try it... I was hoping that the combination with dermarolling could help the penetration to some extent..

Maybe Platelet Rich Plasma treatment would be the best solution... But that you can use only straight after the treatment so I was hoping to find something that I can use everyday as well and these serums seemed like a good option...

If youll keep using the TNS let me know the results!!! Thanks a lot!

I am thinking that the reason the growth factors are not to be put on the skin after dermarolling or on an open wound it that they are produced from actual human tissue. Technically, all actual human elements are filtered out to create the growth factor serum, but I imagine there is always a slight chance that some small particles, or whatever, may evade filtering. It is my understanding that the growth factors media itself has no items that can be be "rejected" by another human immune system. But if there are some undetected particles, I suppose there could be some rejection reaction if the undesirable particle came into contact with the immune system. This is my own thinking, and nobody has actually said this, but it seems logical. Obviously, an open wound could present that problem, or even dermarolling. So, I think this is about avoiding any possible problem. Otherwise, I am sure they would call for injecting the growth factors under the skin for better healing, and that is definitely taboo.

I think that there are some methods where growth factors are developed from a patient's own tissue, and that would not pose the same type of problem.

Anyway, Skin Medica sells the TNS mainly to provide assistance in reducing and protecting from skin wrinkles, which the serum seems to be very good at helping fix, if one reads the reviews. In the case for dermarolling, I think the TNS serum may also have a positive effect on the outward skin texture that can be benificial. Acne cause all kinds of scars and messes with the skin texture. So, I am hoping it may provide some good effect on the outward portion of skin healing while the dermarolling helps with deveolpment of collagen beneath the skin level. I have also noticed that TNS provides a little skin tightening, which I think helps in itself, since I have a variety of scar types, including rolling scars, which seem to have a better appearance with tighter skin. It also gives a little bit of a shine, which I don't like. Also, the odor is pretty foul, but only last for a few minutes until it dries.

I have noticed some skin improvement for me in the last 6 weeks, and there are only three things that I can attribute it to- dermarolling (1 mm), retin-a, and TNS serum. I just recently also added a daily multiple vitamin. So, my plan is to stay on this track and see how things go.

Well, as for the immune reaction to the growth factors I really can´t give you any educated opinion, I am not a dermatologist... The only thing I can say is that I´ve seen a lot of dermatologists using certain types of growth factor serums in connection with dermarolling... There is actually a serum made directly for a mesotherapy use (Dermaheal Stem C´rum SR)... That one can even be injected. Whether it is right to use it like that, that is the question... You might be right, I wish I could comment on it in a more informed way but I really am not a derm...

And yes, growth factors from your own tissue would be the best, that is for sure... PRP, LaViv and other treatments like that are based on this but those are all bloody expensive and can´t be done at home.

If it´s good for wrinkles that´s even better right? Who wants wrinkles anyway:) Have you seen any changes on your skin in that regard?

Hope it works wonders for you! Good luck!!!