Safety and efficacy of microdermabrasion in the treatment of skin disorders: A systematic review

Microdermabrasion is a minimally invasive technology that is widely used in the field of cosmetic medicine. The mechanism of action of microdermabrasion is mechanical peeling of the skin using metal crystals. This review was conducted to evaluate the safety and efficacy of microdermabrasion in the treatment of scar, acne, striae and its other indications.
A comprehensive electronic search was done in clinical evidence databases for clinical trials, systematic reviews, health economic evaluations, and health technology studies. The databases and search engines were PubMed, Ovid Medline, Scopus, Turning Research into Practice (TRIP), Center for Reviews and Disseminations (CRD), Database of Abstracts of Reviews of Effects (DARE), National Health System Economic Evaluation Database (NHS EED), Health Technology Assessment (HTA), Cochrane Library, and ClinicalKey. The search was done up to July 2014. Key references were manually searched to find relevant studies. The eligible articles were investigated regarding the safety and efficacy of microdermabrasion.
This systematic review includes 19 studies with a total of 368 patients, whom were treated with microdermabrasion for treatment of acne, vitiligo, melasma, acne scars, striae, skin rejuvenation, photo damaged skin and, photo-aging. Appraisal of the studies supported the efficacy and safety of microdermabrasion in treating the aforementioned skin problems.
Microdermabrasion, either as a single therapeutic intervention or in combination with other interventions, can be used in the treatment of several skin diseases and conditions. Since its side effects are milder than some other interventions, generally, it is considered as a safe method.