Dermaplaning is a skin treatment that uses an exfoliating blade to skim dead skin cells and hair from your face. It’s also called microplaning or blading.

Dermaplaning aims to make your skin’s surface smooth, youthful, and radiant. This treatment claims to remove deep scarring from acne and uneven pockmarks on your skin. It’s also used to remove “peach fuzz,” the short, soft hairs on your face.

The basic concept of dermaplaning is the same as shaving. By aiming a sterile blade at a 45-degree angle and dragging it slowly across your skin, you remove dead cells, scar tissue, and other debris that may be making your skin’s surface look uneven.

Your skin is exposed daily to harsh environmental toxins, irritants, and sun damage. This can cause the top layer of your skin to appear dull, and it can make you look aged. Dermaplaning clears away those damaged skin cells so newer skin cells are what you see when you look in the mirror.

Reports on how effective dermaplaning is are mostly anecdotal. Everyone has different results, and it’s hard to objectively quantify whether the treatment is a success or not.

Dermaplaning can be used for any skin type and anyone with:

• acne scars
• dull skin
• dry skin
• sun-damaged skin
• fine wrinkles

You don’t need to plan any downtime to recover from a dermaplaning treatment. You may experience redness or feel like your skin is scraped in the two or three days right after the procedure. The procedure takes about 30-45 minutes.

Results of dermaplaning aren’t permanent. The procedure claims to clear away up to three weeks’ worth of dead skin cells. After three weeks to a month, your results will have faded.

After a dermaplaning treatment, you’ll need to be extra careful about sun exposure. Sun damage could reverse the effects of dermaplaning, or create pigment blotches on your freshly uncovered skin cells. In the weeks after a dermaplaning treatment, don’t leave the house without wearing sunscreen on your face.