Hi all, I am looking for others who did, are, or will be pursuing treatment for their acne scars in the Boston area / MA. I have been to several providers so far with minimal (if any) results and am happy to provide details on where I went, what procedures I got done, etc. if that's helpful to anyone else in the area.
Has anyone had CO2 laser for their scars in the Boston area? I am looking to do CO2 laser soon and would like to know if anyone has recommendations.
Currently I'm doing RF microneedling and plan to do TCA cross next. But CO2 laser will come after that.
Boston / MA / New Englanders please interact! I'd love to be able to find a local community of those seeking treatment for their acne scars so we can help each other out with info, recommendations, providers to avoid, etc.
6 hours ago, Tonitrus09 said:Currently I'm doing RF microneedling and plan to do TCA cross next. But CO2 laser will come after that.
May I ask what the rationale is for selecting these treatments in this particular order? Moreover, are you aware of what each treatment is good for?
On 2/23/2021 at 10:51 PM, Sirius Lee said:May I ask what the rationale is for selecting these treatments in this particular order? Moreover, are you aware of what each treatment is good for?
I started seeing a cosmetic derm in Boston for scarring who recommended we start with subcision and regular microneedling. I did 4 rounds of that. She then said that I have "graduated" from subcision (she didn't feel anymore tethered scars) and we can move on to TCA cross and laser if I want to. I asked about doing additional microneedling, this time with RF, and she said that would be fine. I wanted to do the RF microneedling because I am not yet seeing any improvement in my rolling scars.So I am currently doing RF microneedling and will then try the TCA cross. For laser, she recommended Fraxel but I have gotten Fraxel 1550 MANY TIMES and do not find it's helpful. That's why I also mentioned trying CO2 laser.
My understanding is that microneedling can help with skin texture, rolling scars & boxcar scars. Whereas TCA will be best for ice pick scars. The CO2 laser will address any stubborn rolling / boxcar scars that were not raised by microneedling - I hope!
Thoughts? I welcome your feedback.
On 2/25/2021 at 1:22 PM, Tonitrus09 said:I started seeing a cosmetic derm in Boston for scarring who recommended we start with subcision and regular microneedling. I did 4 rounds of that. She then said that I have "graduated" from subcision (she didn't feel anymore tethered scars) and we can move on to TCA cross and laser if I want to. I asked about doing additional microneedling, this time with RF, and she said that would be fine. I wanted to do the RF microneedling because I am not yet seeing any improvement in my rolling scars. So I am currently doing RF microneedling and will then try the TCA cross. For laser, she recommended Fraxel but I have gotten Fraxel 1550 MANY TIMES and do not find it's helpful. That's why I also mentioned trying CO2 laser.
My understanding is that microneedling can help with skin texture, rolling scars & boxcar scars. Whereas TCA will be best for ice pick scars. The CO2 laser will address any stubborn rolling / boxcar scars that were not raised by microneedling - I hope!
Thoughts? I welcome your feedback.
@Sirius Lee I don't want to bother you but I'd love your input on my reply above, if you're able 
thank you!
53 minutes ago, Tonitrus09 said:@Sirius Lee I don't want to bother you but I'd love your input on my reply above, if you're able
Can you tell us who this cosmetic dermatologist is? We just want to make sure you're in good hands. I'm not sure if going to the same doctor for advice if you haven't seen results is a good idea.
I would say CO2 is more for boxcars and maybe some ice pick ones if it can hit those. If anybody has had success with rolling scars from CO2, I'd like to know.
You can try RF microneedling but so far it's been hype based on accounts I've read as well as my treatment with it. However, if you get results, please let people know. I'm sure that doctor would more than accommodate a $1k treatment...
34 minutes ago, Amanda Hall said:Can you tell us who this cosmetic dermatologist is? We just want to make sure you're in good hands. I'm not sure if going to the same doctor for advice if you haven't seen results is a good idea.
I would say CO2 is more for boxcars and maybe some ice pick ones if it can hit those. If anybody has had success with rolling scars from CO2, I'd like to know.
You can try RF microneedling but so far it's been hype based on accounts I've read as well as my treatment with it. However, if you get results, please let people know. I'm sure that doctor would more than accommodate a $1k treatment...
Sure! The cosmetic derm is Dr. Neelam Vashi of BMC. She's the head of the cosmetic dermatology dept.
I really appreciate that! I want to be in good hands, haha! I want to find a provider I trust so badly. And I'm trying to learn so I can be well-informed and make smart, safe, strategic decisions.
I have done two rounds of RF microneedling (Vivace) and I'm not really seeing any improvement. Dr. Vashi does not offer this - I am seeing Dr. Emily Wise of DermWellesley for this treatment. And then today I was reading on this forum that RF microneedling is better to do once you've already done manual methods / lifted the scars up.
So honestly at this point I think I need to find a subcision provider. So I can get full field subcision. Dr. Vashi did not do this for me, which I believe I mentioned in an earlier post (but happy to recount again!). I want to find a reputable acne scar expert who can do things like full field subcision (I think cannula is preferred over nokor?) and TCA cross. Then after several treatments like those with lots of healing time, I could look at other options...
What do you think? I've already spent thousands of dollars and I'm honestly nearly out of hope. I just want to go in the right direction for once and find a provider and a combination of procedures that works for me. So far, it feels like I'm striking out left and right...any guidance is much appreciated.
On 2/25/2021 at 10:22 AM, Tonitrus09 said:I asked about doing additional microneedling, this time with RF, and she said that would be fine. I wanted to do the RF microneedling because I am not yet seeing any improvement in my rolling scars.So I am currently doing RF microneedling and will then try the TCA cross.
I don't recommend RF. It might be good for wrinkles and skin tightening. But it's nearly useless for scars. As already mentioned above, it's more a hype than anything. I don't think the science behind it is there yet.
Anyway, you need to approach the scar treatment differently. Scar, in my view, is made visible due to the SHADOWcreated by the scar border--it's not the crater. If you can get rid of the edges, thereby minimizing the shadow, the less visible your scars will be.The best way to achieve this is TCA or Phenol.
If you keep focusing on filling the crater, I'm afraid you will never get the result you intended. No conventional treatments (subcision, laser, RF, etc) will create or stimulate enough collagen.
9 minutes ago, Sirius Lee said:I don't recommend RF. It might be good for wrinkles and skin tightening. But it's nearly useless for scars. As already mentioned above, it's more a hype than anything. I don't think the science behind it is there yet.
Anyway, you need to approach the scar treatment differently. Scar, in my view, is made visible due to the SHADOWcreated by the scar border--it's not the crater. If you can get rid of the edges, thereby minimizing the shadow, the less visible your scars will be.The best way to achieve this is TCA or Phenol.
If you keep focusing on filling the crater, I'm afraid you will never get the result you intended. No conventional treatments (subcision, laser, RF, etc) will create or stimulate enough collagen.
If you look at before and after pictures of RFM, you'll see some difference. But those must be the best cases. For the average individual, I haven't read many accounts of success. Maybe a few here or there but not many. It's your money so it's your decision.
Sorry, I haven't heard of any of those doctors. I'm on the west coast and the most popular one on the east coast I've heard of is Novick.
14 hours ago, Amanda Hall said:If you look at before and after pictures of RFM, you'll see some difference. But those must be the best cases. For the average individual, I haven't read many accounts of success. Maybe a few here or there but not many. It's your money so it's your decision.
Sorry, I haven't heard of any of those doctors. I'm on the west coast and the most popular one on the east coast I've heard of is Novick.
Thanks! Yeah I think I will stop RFM treatments for now. Not loving it after the 2 I did. Plus, as I said earlier, I really think I need more subcision before going back to energy devices / radiofrequency. Unfortunately I'm struggling to find a trusted provider near me (Boston). Dr. Novick, as you said, is in NYC. But I've seen many negative reviews for him. I think my best bet may be Dr. Weiner in FL...what are your thoughts on him? It feels like this forum has a love/hate relationship with well-known providers like Dr. Weiner, Dr. Rullan, Dr. Lim etc...so it's hard to know who I can trust with my face. 
14 hours ago, Sirius Lee said:I don't recommend RF. It might be good for wrinkles and skin tightening. But it's nearly useless for scars. As already mentioned above, it's more a hype than anything. I don't think the science behind it is there yet.
Anyway, you need to approach the scar treatment differently. Scar, in my view, is made visible due to the SHADOW created by the scar border--it's not the crater. If you can get rid of the edges, thereby minimizing the shadow, the less visible your scars will be. The best way to achieve this is TCA or Phenol.
If you keep focusing on filling the crater, I'm afraid you will never get the result you intended. No conventional treatments (subcision, laser, RF, etc) will create or stimulate enough collagen.
I agree that it makes more sense to focus on TCA / phenol cross to smooth scar edges! Thank you for this advice. I have chosen to stop RFM treatments for now until I have seen some progress from full field subcision and TCA / phenol cross. Just have to find a provider I can trust to do this...
4 hours ago, Tonitrus09 said:Thanks! Yeah I think I will stop RFM treatments for now. Not loving it after the 2 I did. Plus, as I said earlier, I really think I need more subcision before going back to energy devices / radiofrequency. Unfortunately I'm struggling to find a trusted provider near me (Boston). Dr. Novick, as you said, is in NYC. But I've seen many negative reviews for him. I think my best bet may be Dr. Weiner in FL...what are your thoughts on him? It feels like this forum has a love/hate relationship with well-known providers like Dr. Weiner, Dr. Rullan, Dr. Lim etc...so it's hard to know who I can trust with my face.
I agree that it makes more sense to focus on TCA / phenol cross to smooth scar edges! Thank you for this advice. I have chosen to stop RFM treatments for now until I have seen some progress from full field subcision and TCA / phenol cross. Just have to find a provider I can trust to do this...
The problem with scar treatment is that every doctor is going to have bad cases. The ones you mentioned are the most popular ones on this forum. You can make an assumption that people go to them because they are more advanced than the average derm/PS in treating scars. But results aren't guaranteed. All of those doctors have great online presence and word-of-mouth reviews. But when you have so many cases, you're bound to have bad ones as well. There are people's stories of Weiner on this forum. You just have to search for them. He's got lots of tools in his arsenal.
Maybe it's trying a new device or new treatment and not just the doctor. It's just too hard to predict.
43 minutes ago, Amanda Hall said:The problem with scar treatment is that every doctor is going to have bad cases. The ones you mentioned are the most popular ones on this forum. You can make an assumption that people go to them because they are more advanced than the average derm/PS in treating scars. But results aren't guaranteed. All of those doctors have great online presence and word-of-mouth reviews. But when you have so many cases, you're bound to have bad ones as well. There are people's stories of Weiner on this forum. You just have to search for them. He's got lots of tools in his arsenal.
Maybe it's trying a new device or new treatment and not just the doctor. It's just too hard to predict.
That makes sense. And you said it so perfectly - the biggest challenge sometimes is knowing what's not working and why...is the procedure not the right one for you / your scars? Or would the same procedure be effective in the hands of a different provider? It's so hard to know. I have anxiety all the time knowing that I can't make the most strategic decisions for my treatment because so much is unknown & unpredictable. Instead, this whole scar treatment journey feels like throwing things at a wall and seeing what sticks...all while taking the very real risk that your scars could get worse / you could get new ones along the way or experience other unwanted side effects. At least we can support each other and share information along the way...
6 hours ago, Tonitrus09 said:That makes sense. And you said it so perfectly - the biggest challenge sometimes is knowing what's not working and why...is the procedure not the right one for you / your scars? Or would the same procedure be effective in the hands of a different provider? It's so hard to know. I have anxiety all the time knowing that I can't make the most strategic decisions for my treatment because so much is unknown & unpredictable. Instead, this whole scar treatment journey feels like throwing things at a wall and seeing what sticks...all while taking the very real risk that your scars could get worse / you could get new ones along the way or experience other unwanted side effects.
Exactly. For me, it was trial and error. What worked for me was aggressive fractional CO2 laser. This procedure doesn't work for many though. But I've tried so many treatments and the CO2 has been the only thing that's helped me. At this point, I don't want to spend more time and money with other treatments.
I've seen a number of dermatologists because, if I have one unsuccessful/bad treatment, I jump ship. I don't like BS and don't like to feel getting ripped off. Then you'll have those who say that you need to stick with the doctor's plan and get a series of treatment. Guess I'm stubborn.
On 3/17/2021 at 10:27 PM, Amanda Hall said:Exactly. For me, it was trial and error. What worked for me was aggressive fractional CO2 laser. This procedure doesn't work for many though. But I've tried so many treatments and the CO2 has been the only thing that's helped me. At this point, I don'twant to spend more time and money with other treatments.
I've seen a number of dermatologists because, if I have one unsuccessful/bad treatment, I jump ship. I don't like BS and don't like to feel getting ripped off. Then you'll have those who say that you need to stick with the doctor's plan and get a series of treatment. Guess I'm stubborn.
I get that. I always feel torn between "well, it can take multiple rounds of a treatment / procedure to see results! stick with it!" and "that procedure did nothing for me. time to see someone else for treatment!"
out of curiosity, who did your fractional CO2 laser treatment? would you mind messaging me? I'm desperate to find a provider that has produced real results
Try a new doctor - you don't owe it to anyone to stick with them when you're talking about huge sums of money. I saw that you did 1550 several times - I made the same mistake! Totally useless - I would move on from that doctor! Ideally one that is a scar expert and has a lot of different toys to play with. A surgeon will cut and a laser doctor will laser you -I felt most at ease talking to scar experts that routinely used different types of treatments but wouldcustomize it for me because it shows that they aren't just using the only tool they know how to use.
If you're really anxious about who to see or what treatments to do (and as indecisive as me),I highly recommend what I ended up doing which is to see a few scar expert doctors and see what they all generally recommendin common, then go with what works for you. It's worth the consult fees if you're going to spend tons of money anyway on scar treatments! And if you're willing to travel, many of the known experts will do virtual consults (or at least analyze your pictures). I would highly recommend that over listening to random people on this forum- all you're going to get from that is second guessing your decisions because there's a million different opinions on this forum who are just as indecisive or more indecisive than you, so it's just going to confuse you more. The people who actually know what they're talking about (scar expert DOCTORS) aren't on these forums. Not to say that a lot of advice around here isn't useful and some people have a lot of knowledge, at the end of the day, doctors are the real experts and who you should listen to. I saw 4 different experts for my most recent treatment and the main thing that differered was the type of subcision and the type of energy device.
Thanks all again for the info and support on this thread! I wanted to check in with the Boston area / New England users here and see if anyone has found any new, promising providers.
I just saw there's a newer place called Premier Dermatology practice in Wellesley. They offer various treatments, including manual methods like subcision, which gets them points in my book. Anyone heard of their head doctor, or seen her before? Dr. Melissa Burnett
Thanks in advance!
Try a new doctor - you don't owe it to anyone to stick with them when you're talking about huge sums of money. I saw that you did 1550 several times - I made the same mistake! Totally useless - I would move on from that doctor! Ideally one that is a scar expert and has a lot of different toys to play with. A surgeon will cut and a laser doctor will laser you -I felt most at ease talking to scar experts that routinely used different types of treatments but wouldcustomize it for me because it shows that they aren't just using the only tool they know how to use.
If you're really anxious about who to see or what treatments to do (and as indecisive as me),I highly recommend what I ended up doing which is to see a few scar expert doctors and see what they all generally recommendin common, then go with what works for you. It's worth the consult fees if you're going to spend tons of money anyway on scar treatments! And if you're willing to travel, many of the known experts will do virtual consults (or at least analyze your pictures). I would highly recommend that over listening to random people on this forum- all you're going to get from that is second guessing your decisions because there's a million different opinions on this forum who are just as indecisive or more indecisive than you, so it's just going to confuse you more. The people who actually know what they're talking about (scar expert DOCTORS) aren't on these forums. Not to say that a lot of advice around here isn't useful and some people have a lot of knowledge, at the end of the day, doctors are the real experts and who you should listen to. I saw 4 different experts for my most recent treatment and the main thing that differered was the type of subcision and the type of energy device.
Thank you for this comment! Did you see anyone in the Boston area?
Thanks all again for the info and support on this thread! I wanted to check in with the Boston area / New England users here and see if anyone has found any new, promising providers.
I just saw there's a newer place called Premier Dermatology practice in Wellesley. They offer various treatments, including manual methods like subcision, which gets them points in my book. Anyone heard of their head doctor, or seen her before? Dr. Melissa Burnett
Thanks in advance!
Hi, I saw your previous journey with Dr. Rullan. Are you not happy with the result you got?
Thanks all again for the info and support on this thread! I wanted to check in with the Boston area / New England users here and see if anyone has found any new, promising providers.
I just saw there's a newer place called Premier Dermatology practice in Wellesley. They offer various treatments, including manual methods like subcision, which gets them points in my book. Anyone heard of their head doctor, or seen her before? Dr. Melissa Burnett
Thanks in advance!
Hi, I saw your previous journey with Dr. Rullan. Are you not happy with the result you got?
I am happy! I've seen him twice with good results. I'm planning to go again in December. When I first started going, they estimated it would take 4-6 treatments to get the result I want. I'm looking for somewhere I can go for treatment that's closer to home because flying to CA to see him is a lot!
Thanks all again for the info and support on this thread! I wanted to check in with the Boston area / New England users here and see if anyone has found any new, promising providers.
I just saw there's a newer place called Premier Dermatology practice in Wellesley. They offer various treatments, including manual methods like subcision, which gets them points in my book. Anyone heard of their head doctor, or seen her before? Dr. Melissa Burnett
Thanks in advance!
Hi, I saw your previous journey with Dr. Rullan. Are you not happy with the result you got?
I am happy! I've seen him twice with good results. I'm planning to go again in December. When I first started going, they estimated it would take 4-6 treatments to get the result I want. I'm looking for somewhere I can go for treatment that's closer to home because flying to CA to see him is a lot!
Thanks for the info. Great to hear you are still happy about that. Best wishes for you!