Isolaz : Light Therapy + Suction

Isolaz was described to me by my dermatologist as an `alternative to Accutane`. It was supposed to CURE my sudden and painful, cystic acne. Although these were far fetched claims, I was desperate for relief (as acne sufferers are) and dared to hope. Despite going regularly for treatments I broke out much worse (``Oh don`t worry, it`s just purging``) and at the end of 14 sessions was left with deeper acne, more scars, and new redness. Not to mention after every session I was left a swollen, red mess bleeding from my cysts. Please don`t waste your money on this treatment because you will most likely regret it. I know I do.

I only joined so that I could review this treatment. I am so happy with it. Having paid for 6 treatments I was fully prepared to wait until the end to see the results but I am now on my 3rd and it has killed almost all of my acne. I had moderate acne and now I am only left with red marks where my acne was (not scarring from the isolaz). I will start by describing the treatment. Normally, the whole procedure goes on for maximum 20 mins. The technician will cleanse your face and then get right to it. The machine sucks at your face and then flashes. The suction feels like someone pinching your face but without using their nails. Of course, if your skin is really sore because of your acne then its going to be uncomfortable but it is absolutely bearable. The technician will go over the main areas then switch to a smaller tool to get a more precise action. Once your done, she will then put a very hydrating gel on (that feels lovely) followed by a moisturiser. After, your skin will look red, irritated and blotchy but will feel brilliant. You don't wash your face that night. After the first go, I have to admit I wasn't that impressed. My skin looked pretty much the same. But now, after my third I feel confident that this treatment is really going to control my acne by killing all the bad bacteria in my skin. I actually look forward to going because I can't wait to see the results the next day. It is a treatment that you have to stick with and if its painful or burning you then it is definitely not being done right! I can't help but think that the bad reviews are down to bad practitioners. If you live in the UK and are struggling with your skin, go into a Sk:n clinic and book a free consultation. They know what they are talking about and want to see good results. They tailor make your skin care for you. You have to find the thing thats right for you. We don't all have the same acne so we can't all have the same cure. UNFORTUNATELY!!! Chin u

I went for a consulation for Ppx/Isolax at the Harley Medical Group. I suffer from mild acne on my skin. The nurse was very lovely and assured me that I will get rid of the spots on my skin including any blackheads. I decided to pay for 1 treatment before committing myself to 5. Before my treatment the nurse came in with a piece of paper and said " during the consulation you hear all the positive things but I am now going to tell you all the negative ones and please sign at the bottom". The side effects included hyper/ hypopigmentation, scarring, redness ( and many more things). I was so annoyed that after happily taking my money and although I specifically asked if there were side effects I was lied to and told there were none. I got so freaked out that I only got a small area of my chin treated. 2 months later I still have the spots that came out after the treatment. Although I was told that the spots that would have come out will come out I just think that it caused the oil to come to the surface and caused more congestion. I am so glad I did not allow them to do my whole face and that I did not pay for a course of treatmenrs. DO NOT WASTE YOUR MONEY like I did. I wish I gave it to charity now and my deserperation wasn't exploited in this way.

I am on my 3rd treatment. worked great after my first but has gotten worse after my 2nd. Doctor says it pulls up bacteria and it may cause breakout but will be better. Cant say if i would recommend it yet.

I am writing this review to encourage those who has stopped isolaz after their first treatment or second treatment to give it more time and keep continuing. However, do not rely on it entirely, get your doctor to prescribe you with retin a, topical antibiotics and oral antibiotics. This is going to get to the root of the problem of ance. You are probably gonna start doubting yourself along the way but just keep going. This might seem like a really long journey but just hang in there. It will be worth it. A few months of suffering for entirely clear for life after that is so worth it. Remember to never stop using retin A if you do use it. Also, it will be great if you could maintain with monthly isolaz even after your skin clears up. In the meanwhile, go for isolaz every 2 weeks till you clear up. In fact, you could speak to your dermatologist about alternating chemical peel and isolaz. As isolaz vacuums out all the debris from your pores while chemical peel is deep exfloliating your skin. the action together makes it very superior and quick to clear up the skin entirely. The only reason i am giving this treatment 4 stars is because i do think it is very expensive. Also, i have tried carbon peel to help deep cleanse my skin but this is really nothing as compared to isolaz.

If you can afford it, I would recommend going for a few consecutive treatments (every week or 2) and once clear going for maintenance treatments (every month or so). Also, make sure you are getting this done by a doctor. I'm sure there are estheticians who do it well however here was my experience: Went to a pricey dermatology practice first. They would steam me for about 10 min. before and then the dr would do the treatment. I never had any redness or bruising. B/c of the expensive price I sought out others and found a spa with a good price on the treatment. This was a mistake. She did steam me before as well, however, had trouble getting the vacuum to stick to my skin and was agressive in trying to make it work correctly. I left with such extreme bruising and looked like I got beat up, literally. It was horrible and it lasted a couple of weeks. This time I searched for a dr. who was cheaper than the first and found one. She doesn't always use steam (though I think it's better if you do), however, she knows how to use the equipment properly. She mists the area before applying the device so that she has no problem w/ it not sticking to my skin properly and I have little or no marks after these sessions. Another bonus is that a dr. can perform extractions properly. I believe the goal is really to find out internally why we get acne and address that if we can, however, if you can afford it, find a good dr. and go regularly. If you are experiencing any more than the lightest of bruising which goes away in a day or so, than don't go back to that place as they are probably not doing it correctly. I bruise easily and these are my observations. Hope this helps!

My derm told me this was sure-fire solution basically. So I was optomistic. I am a teenager with mild acne and oily skin. I had three treatments, which is supposed to be enough. Isolaz is like a little vacuum, it sucks on your skin then zaps it with a laser, supposedly to kill the bacteria. So it makes sense in theory. PLEASE SAVE YOUR MONEY! It is disgustingly expensive and did nothing for me. I think it just gave me a bunch of blackheads because it brought all the oil to the surface.

Really expensive. Caused my ENTIRE face to break out, which I have never before in my life experienced. It is taking weeks to heal, which just infuriates me. I had the Isolaz treatments done first. Then, when my face broke out like mad (which was rather alarming to me), they tried Allumera and IPL to help "clear" me up. Well, the next week I had 8 cyst like lumps on my face. I have never had anything even remotely like this happen to me, even on my worst PMS days. I went to see a dermatologist for two small blemishes on my chin-the rest of my face was clear, believe me. This was just an awful experience and has taken weeks to heal. I ended up having to go see my dermatologist in Los Angeles to get this thing under control-I live in San Diego now so I had wanted to find a derm closer to home. Never again. I am still in the process of healing and it's been over two months now. TCA peels people. Take the ten day downtime of the TCA peel and watch it do wonders to clear your acne. Because when you consider the alternative, weeks and/or months of downtime, from major breakouts from having ISOLAZ treatments, well, 10 days is nothing compared! Just make sure you have a professional (and ask for references) giving you the peel. A doctor is best to see for this. And just so you know, on top of the TCA peel I had, I've had to be put on both oral and topical antibiotics to help get this thing under control. The good news is, its working. But what a nightmare and what a waste of money on top of days worth of freaking out over what this ridiculous treatment caused me to suffer from. I cannot stress enough to those thinking about doing ISOLAZ, DON'T! Don't do it.

This is amazing. I love it. It improved my skin so much. To the person below me, you definitely need more than three times. I have had Isolaz tons of times.

I did not have this treatment for acne but for visable thread veins on my cheeks and nose. While after my 1st treatment I was left with bearable bruising, after the 2nd treatment I was left with serious rectangular burn marks all over my cheeks and scarring where blisters eventually healed within the borders of the rectangles. My face was also swollen for 4 days following the treatment. The procedure was extremely painful at times and although I was in tears, the nurse operating the machine encouraged me to go on, and because she was a medical professional I trusted her. I guess the lesson is to listen to your body and if you think something is wrong speak up!! I was being physically burned but thought that I must just be over reacting to the pain. I have paid £450 for 5 sessions of Isolaz which I will not now be completing and I doubt that I will be refunded any money. I really don't care about the money as much as I am distressed by the damage to my face which I fear is permanent (and ironically may only be salvagable with further laser treatment) I know that this treatment works for some people and I would say that where my skin has not been burned (where a lower setting was used) the skin texture is improved and smoother. But due to my overall experience I would not recommend this treatment as the risks are, in my mind, too great. If you are determined to have this, then please be aware that it is certainly not painless and if you feel severe pain during ask the nurse/doctor to stop before permanent damage is done.