Chemical Peels
Results
Side Effects

Chemical peels are strong acids applied by a professional in high percentages to the skin for a few minutes at a time. They...

Chemical peels are strong acids applied by a professional in high percentages to the skin for a few minutes at a time. They remove the top layer of skin cells and are thought to help promote the growth of fresh new skin cells.

Chemical peels are usually performed 4 to 10 times in 2-week intervals. Results are usually temporary, therefore it is not normally recommended for chronic acne.

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Compare To Other Treatments
5
24%
4
27.2%
3
21.2%
2
12.4%
1
15.2%

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May 6, 2009

Pros:

Works EXTREMELY well; can buy your own home kits. Used %50 on my face and followed directions, lightened my darker scars dramatically and got rid of existing acne and other scars completely. Very inexpensive for a home kit.

Cons:

About one week down time with crusting and peeling of the skin. Have to use SPF after the treatment for about 3 months. Burning of the skin (only when first applied) for about 3 minutes.

It DOES work very very efficiently; yet the actual % varies on a person actual skin type. Basically eliminated all of my acne in 2 treatments of high concentration %50 TCA in 3 weeks.
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March 27, 2009

Pros:

the texture of skin becomes smoother after just one peel.
kinda lighten some scarrings

Cons:

once you get the peel u'd better get prepare to stay at home for a week!!Your face will look scary for a week n u gotta control your hands to not tear off the flaking skin!

I got the LUNCHTIME PEEL at the dermatologist office and the lady told me that there would be little or no downtime and this treatment wont peel like what the Vitalize peel does, it will be slight flaking but not actually peeling like a onion...my face turned super red in a hour after the treatment, n the redness last until the third day morning, eventually the redness became dark brown n glassy, some spots around the corner of my eyes even became the scabs! The whole face was so tight n dry..at the third day's night the skin actually started peeling around the mouth...it was not FLAKING, it was peeling like the onions!!! (I'm so glad that I didn't get Vitalize peel) I couldn't go out for 4 days because the serious peeling.I have 2,3 small breakouts after the peel but they cure fast..it's my fourth day after the peel, I'm glad to see the result after just one peel!
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March 12, 2009

Pros:

Leaves your skin baby smooth and clear, takes 20 minutes, very mild treatment,

Cons:

Peeling takes a few days, a bit pricey

28 y/o F: If you're like me with very light acne & some scarring from your teen yrs, the Vitalize Peel is what you should get! I did it on a Fri. afternoon, started peeling by Sun. morning & got the worst of it on Mon. After that, the peeling was very mild but I felt like a leper on Mon. My face was also a bit red, but my family swore up & down it was my imagination. Maybe it was. I suffer from a lot of blackheads, which are very difficult to clean. This peel removed almost all of them & the ones that were left were at the surface. All I had to do was push lightly down and out they came! One pimple that would never go away completely & would always scar has now risen to the surface & all I have to do is wait for it to heal or burst/heal & my skin will be perfect. It's now Wed. & I have a little peeling around my neck & near my ears. Just make sure to moisturize & stay out of the sun. Best part - I only have to maintain once/year! Best decision I ever made was a Vitalize
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March 11, 2009

Pros:

I am hoping for clear even skin for my wedding next month

Cons:

Fear of skin getting worse

After reading the testimonials.....I AM SCARED!!! I have about 6 weeks until my wedding and I cannot afford to look terrible on the biggest day of my life. I will keep you posted on my progress. Pray for me!!
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March 7, 2009

Pros:

hoping for clear skin after all this peeling from my vi peel

Cons:

i had uneven skin tone hoping to clear this up

i paid for only two treatments and three isaloz ane treatment thats great it totally lifted my face would recommend this treatment not sure about the vipeel maybe in two more days all together these treatments cost me $1500
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March 7, 2009

Pros:

None as yet

Cons:

Made some of my spots worse, and I actually have gained some wrinkles that I didn't have before. I now believe your epidermis is there for reason and should not be burnt off! The skin is now much more sensitive and open to damage.

Totally not worth the cost. I've had one out of my four TCA peels. They've told me to have the other 3 one week apart but I think I'll pass - I do not believe they are beneficial and for acne prone skin it makes us unable to use deep cleansing products as you then have to be so gentle with the damaged skin. Don't bother - have lots of facials and use good products instead.
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March 6, 2009

Pros:

None.

Cons:

Downtime, cost, and break outs.

I got a chemical peel done to my face and it burned like hell! Not to mention that I looked like a burned victim for 3 days afterward. After my leather feeling red skin peeled off I was fine for about 2 more days and then BAM, I started to break out and as each day came I got more acne. I was getting 1-2 zits a week at the time before this treatment, now I have 2 cystic knotts under my skin and other small ones. It's been a week and I'm waiting for my skin to clear. Unless you like wasting money and enjoy painful procedures that just make you worse, I wouldn't recommend chemical peel. Oh and look up hyper pigmentation cause that has happened to some people from doing this.
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March 5, 2009

Pros:

Got rid of a huge ugly pimple within a couple of days!

Cons:

Peeling, fever blisters

This is the second time I've gotten a chemical peel and it wasn't bad at all. My face was red for about 30 minutes after the treatment. I did get a fever blister (which was previously explained to me; if you are prone to getting fever blisters when you have a cold you are likely to get them after this process). The best part about this treatment was that it got rid of this huge pimple on my chin within a couple of days! I loved it. It also made the texture of my skin smoother.
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February 24, 2009

Pros:

NONE

Cons:

EVERYTHING

My skin is horrible. i had a glycolic peel and my face broke out like never before. My cheeks, forehead, and chin now have acne and i have horrible post hyperpigmentation now. The new acne now takes weeks to go away, when it used to only take a couple of days. i just cry and cry now because it was the biggest mistake I made. I had perfect skin last yr and now this year, im just a mess. The peel made it 10x worse.
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February 24, 2009

Pros:

I seen a difference in the appearance of my skin the day of after. Skin looked clearer. The frosting process did take more where I had more of the sun damage. Which is what I was aiming for.

Cons:

The scabbing process. It's ugly but, the result are great.

If instructions are followed accordingly, this product works great. I will be using it again in a month but I will do it in sections.
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The right dermatologist can make a big difference to your patient experience and the success of your acne treatment plan. Here are the steps to find a dermatologist who is a good fit:

  1. Use the search feature on the American Academy of Dermatology website to look for board-certified dermatologists in your area, and filter the search results for doctors with a special interest in treating acne.
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