Facials & Peels

Chemical peels are an effective way to rejuvenate your complexion.

Peels for Every Skin Concern

When performed by a board-certified dermatologist or registered aesthetician, a chemical peel can target and treat a range of skin concerns, including fine lines, dullness, melasma and sun damage, acne, and uneven texture. They can be applied to the face, neck, and hands at different strengths according to patients’ needs.

What Is a Facial Peel?

Chemical peels work by removing old, damaged skin cells to reveal the healthy, more radiant skin beneath. APDerm offers the following strengths of peels:

Light (superficial) peel: Designed to penetrate the outer layer of skin, light peels use a mild alpha hydroxy acid to provide a gentle exfoliation.
Medium peel: These are for targeting the outer and middle layer of skin to remove damaged cells, often using glycolic acid or trichloroacetic
Deep peel: Trichloroacetic acid or phenol is used to penetrate the middle layer of skin more thoroughly for deeper exfoliation.

Getting a Peel What You Need to Know

During a peel, a chemical solution is applied to the face. Topical or local anesthetic is applied to prevent pain. For deep peels, however, sedation is generally required. A procedure lasts between 30 and 90 minutes. Before scheduling a peel, it’s important that you haven’t been on medication, such as Accutane, for at least six months, and you should refrain from using retinoids for at least 48 hours before your appointment.

As far as aftercare and recovery are concerned, this also depends on the type of peel that was performed.

Both light and medium peels take up to a week, with medium peels swelling and crusting before the new skin is revealed. Deep chemical peels will result in inflammation, redness, and a burning sensation.

New skin will take around two weeks to develop, but spots and flaking can last for weeks and redness for months. This is why following the aftercare instructions given to you by your dermatologist is crucial. Use the prescribed skincare products, avoid makeup, and stay out of the sun until the skin is completely healed to reveal a fresh new face!

Chemical Peels Offered

Rejuvenize Peel

The Rejuvenize Peel® is the deepest of the SkinMedica peels, providing the most dramatic results possible while maintaining minimal irritation and moderate peeling lasting three to six days. This advanced treatment consists of a unique combination of alpha and beta hydroxy acids, resorcinol, and retinoic acid, as well as built-in anti-irritants and penetration enhancers. This is the perfect peel for anyone with moderate-to-severe sun damage, lines and wrinkles, pigmentation, melasma, acne, and scarring.

Illuminize Peel

The Illuminize Peel® is a safe lactic acid (LHA) peel that is gentle enough for most skin types. It helps treat mild skin imperfections and brightens the overall appearance of the skin.

Beta Peel

This safe, self-neutralizing, 20 percent to 30 percent beta hydroxy acid peel (BHA) is gentle enough for most skin types and is especially helpful for acne-prone skin but potent enough to improve and clarify fine lines. BHA is known for its benefits for treating acne, exfoliating, and stimulating cellular turnover to reveal softer and smoother skin. Salicylic acid is the most commonly used BHA. It has anti-inflammatory effects that can decrease erythema (redness) associated with acne. The beta peels are commonly used on the face, back, chest, and back of hands. Some dryness and redness are normal following a beta peel, but you may not experience any actual peeling.

Jessner Peel

This peel is excellent for all skin types. It smooths and rejuvenates the skin, producing beautiful results in treating acne, discoloration, moderate wrinkling, and sun damage. Peeling of the face, neck, hands, and upper chest is also quite effective. The Jessner Peel combines lactic acid, salicylic acid, and resorcinol to produce deeper penetration and greater exfoliation of the outer layers of skin cells. This deeper exfoliation can produce noticeable flaking three to four days after the peel. Within a week, a smoother, brighter, healthier layer of skin will be revealed.

TCA Peel

Trichloro-acetic acid (TCA) peels are medium-depth solutions that use high concentrations of trichloro-acetic, glycolic, lactic, and salicylic acids to achieve a variety of skin resurfacing and rejuvenation results. More aggressive than superficial and light peels, TCA peels and other medium-depth solutions penetrate through the epidermis layer of skin and into the dermis layer. Although recovery times are more extensive than lighter peels, the benefits are superior.

A TCA peel is a medium-depth peel used to remove fine lines and wrinkles, precancerous skin lesions, sun damage, and hyperpigmentation, as well as refine superficial acne scars. This treatment is performed by a doctor and requires a week at home to heal.

First, the Jessner solution is applied, followed by the TCA solution. This peel can result in moderate discomfort, as the skin will physically peel. For most people, visible peeling starts on days three and four after the TCA solution has had time to work on your skin. However, some people may peel earlier or later.

By day three, your skin will not be as red anymore, but you still have to be gentle with it. It will feel dry and look crepey until this top layer of dead skin peels off. You must baby your skin during this process and keep it well-hydrated. After about five days, once the top layer has peeled away, you may begin to wear mineral makeup.

Peel Add-Ons

Retinoic Acid Peel

A three percent retinoic acid solution is applied to the skin as an add-on after a Beta or Jessner Peel to enhance the peel potency and help with aging skin, acne, and pigmentation.

The acid is left on the skin for up to four hours and then rinsed off with water at home. A protective sunscreen is put on the face before you leave our office. The gentle peeling process may begin a few days after application.

Extractions

As a peel add-on, once the skin has been properly prepared with a light peel, facial, or microdermabrasion, which helps soften up the plug of hardened sebum that makes up the blackhead (also called a comedone), extractions can be safely performed by our trained medical aestheticians. A lancet or comedone extractor is used to remove blackheads and milia trapped under the skin’s surface. Extractions are one of the most important parts of a facial or peel if you have blackheads or whiteheads.

Dermaplaning

Dermaplaning is a simple and safe procedure for exfoliating the epidermis and ridding the skin of fine vellus hair (colloquially called peach fuzz). Using a scalpel and a delicate touch, the aesthetician simply abrades the surface of the skin using light, feathery strokes. Dermaplaning is beneficial for patients with rough/dry skin, superficial hyperpigmentation, mild acne scarring or fine lines, and wrinkles. This treatment results in a more refined, smooth, “glowing” appearance.

This is also great for patients who are pregnant or nursing that want a deep exfoliation but are not allowed to use peeling agents. There is no downtime with this procedure and it can be done as often as every two weeks. Contradictions include allergy to nickel, numerous raised lesions on the skin, and inflamed acne.

Micropeel

The Micropeel is a three-step clinical procedure that combines dermaplaning, chemical peeling, and cryogenic therapy to reduce fine lines, wrinkles, hyperpigmentation, dullness, and visible skin imperfections.

Dermaplaning: A manual exfoliation technique that safely and efficiently removes surface skin and vellus hair gently with a special dermaplaning blade, priming the skin for a chemical peel.
Chemical peel: Using an optimized solution formulated for resurfacing the skin by removing the outer epidermis and stimulating collagen to improve pigmentation, fine lines and wrinkles, texture, and skin impurities.
Cryogenic therapy: This anti-inflammatory and antibacterial freezing procedure increases the rate of cell turnover and leaves skin feeling cool and tight.

Micropeel Plus

This solution is a one-step clinical procedure of chemical exfoliation designed to reduce acne and help correct environmental damage. It uses a combination of salicylic acid to refine pores and help reduce the appearance of acne and glycolic acid to improve rough texture, blotchiness, and uneven skin tone.

The APDerm Advantage

APDerm offers comprehensive, high-quality dermatological care for your entire family. Through the APDerm Network, our practices provide access to a wide network of dermatology specialists who use the latest advanced, patient-centered technology to perform medical, cosmetic, and surgical dermatology. Our state-of-the-art facilities ensure patients enjoy a clean, relaxed, professional environment with support from our attentive staff. We offer flexible payment options, covering most insurance plans and self-pay. Appointments are guaranteed within 30 days, and we are committed to providing timely, professional services in conveniently located facilities.

Set Up Your Appointment With a Dermatologist Today

Our tailored facials and peels quickly and effectively remove old or damaged skin cells, boosting your skin's vitality and clarity. Consistent treatments, as part of a structured skincare regimen, help preserve a youthful appearance. If you are experiencing skin concerns that could benefit from a peel, use the buttons below to find a clinician or location near you that offers these treatments.

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