Skincare for Sensitive Skin

At The Pearl Dermatology, we advise our patients with sensitive skin to minimize their exposure to their triggers and practice gentle skin care. Patients should wash their face with a mild, non-abrasive cleaner using their fingertips and gently blot their skin dry. Patients should avoid alcohol-containing skin care products, witch hazel, fragrances, abrasive skin care products, and skin scrubs as these can cause redness, burning, stinging, and irritation. Sunscreen with an SPF over 30 should be worn daily. We recommend mineral based sunscreens (zinc oxide or titanium oxide) over chemical based sunscreens for our sensitive skin patients. For those patients whom suffer from rosacea, green tinted cosmetics and intense pulsed light (IPL) treatments can be used to lessen facial redness. Chemical peels are best avoided as they have the potential to worsen sensitivity, redness, and the appearance of blood vessels.

Maintaining a proper skin barrier and skin moisturization is key to prevent dryness and further irritation from irritants and allergens. This can be achieved with moisturizers containing hyaluronic acid, ceramides, free fatty acids, and cholesterol all of which are normal components of our skin. For patients with sensitive skin seeking anti-aging options, skin care creams containing growth factors and peptides can be used to increase collagen levels as topical retinols can worsen dryness, irritation, and redness. Your dermatologist may also recommend procedures to help build collagen for example Ultherapy, microneedling with PRP, or laser resurfacing.