What Is Microneedling? What It Does and How It Works

Microneedling is a treatment that uses a handheld device tipped with very fine, short needles to make thousands of controlled, tiny punctures in the skin. The skin treats each one as a small wound to repair, and that repair response is what the treatment is for: over a series of visits, it is used to improve the appearance of acne scars, lines, and uneven texture on the face. At Savage Serenity MedSpa in Fresno, microneedling is performed by the practice’s nurse injectors, on its own or with PRF made from your own blood.

Microneedling at a glance

What it is: A medical skin treatment that uses fine needles to make controlled micro-punctures so the skin repairs itself with new collagen.

Other names: Collagen induction therapy; skin needling; often called by the brand name of the pen a clinic uses.

Used for: The appearance of acne scars, fine lines, rough or uneven texture, and uneven tone on the face.

Age: Adults 22 and older.

Who performs it: The practice’s nurse injectors, trained by Angela Hash, BSN, RN.

A visit: About 30 minutes for the face after numbing cream; longer when PRF is added.

How many visits: Usually a short series, about three, roughly four weeks apart, set at your consultation.

Afterward: Redness and warmth for about one to two days, like a mild sunburn; makeup and active skin care wait about a day.

What microneedling is

Microneedling is a medical treatment that uses tiny needles to puncture the skin. The device most clinics use is a motorized pen with a sterile cartridge of fine needles at its tip. Your provider sets how deep the needles go and how fast they move, then passes the pen across the skin in overlapping strokes. Each pass leaves a field of micro-punctures too small to see once the skin calms down.

You will hear a few names for it. Collagen induction therapy is the dermatology name for what the treatment sets out to do, skin needling is the plain one, and people often use the brand name of a particular pen to mean the treatment itself.

A clinic treatment and a home roller are not the same thing. The products sold for home use typically have shorter, blunt needles meant only to exfoliate or smooth the surface, and pressing one too hard or reusing it can damage the skin or spread infection. The pens used in a clinic reach living skin, which is what makes microneedling a medical procedure, performed by a trained provider.

What does microneedling do to the skin?

Microneedling works by prompting the skin to make new collagen. Each needle channel is a tiny, clean injury, and the skin answers it the way it answers any small wound: it closes the channel and lays down fresh collagen and elastin in and around it. Because the channels are so small and so many, that repair happens across the whole treated area at once, while the surface between the channels stays intact, which is what keeps recovery short.

That is also why the changes are gradual. New collagen is built over weeks, not days, so the texture and tone changes the treatment is aimed at show up slowly across a series, and each visit adds to the one before it.

The clinical study behind the first clinic microneedling pen gives an honest sense of scale. Twenty adults had three treatments a month apart. Six months after the last one, 11 of the 20 showed visible improvement in their scars on blinded photo grading, and none had scars that looked worse. That is what microneedling does: real improvement for just over half the group, in a series, over months, and not a scar erased in one visit.

What microneedling does not do

Microneedling does not add volume, and it does not lift skin that has loosened. Hollow cheeks, deep folds, and sagging along the jaw are structural, and a needle pass over the surface does not change structure. That is the work of dermal fillers, Sculptra, or Sofwave, and your provider will say so at your consultation if that is what your concern calls for. Microneedling is also not a single visit treatment, and it is not done over active breakouts, a cold sore, or irritated skin.

What microneedling is used for

Microneedling devices of the kind used in clinics are FDA cleared to improve the appearance of facial acne scars, facial wrinkles, and abdominal scars in adults 22 and older.

At Savage Serenity, microneedling is a face treatment, and the reasons people book it are the ones you would expect: acne scarring, fine lines, rough or uneven texture, and uneven tone. It is one of the Savage Treatments, the practice’s clinical skin menu, alongside chemical peels, Sofwave, and laser hair removal. The treatment page for microneedling in Fresno has the full picture of how it is offered here.

Whether microneedling is the right tool for your concern is a consultation question. Acne scars come in several shapes, lines come from several causes, and the plan depends on which you have and on your skin type.

What happens at a microneedling appointment

A microneedling visit at Savage Serenity starts with a consultation. Your provider looks at your skin, asks about your history, including the medications and skin conditions listed further down this page, and sets a plan: how many visits, how far apart, and whether to add PRF.

On the day, numbing cream goes on first and sits for a while before the treatment begins. Once your skin is numb, your provider cleans it and works the pen across the treatment area in sections, adjusting the depth and settings to your skin type and to the concern being treated. A face treatment takes about 30 minutes, longer when PRF is added, since the blood draw and the spin come first. Most people describe the feeling as pressure and a light scratching sensation.

When it is done, your skin looks flushed, like a sunburn, and feels warm and tight. That is the repair response starting, and it settles over the next day or two. The practice’s article on what to expect during PRF microneedling walks through the version with the blood draw, step by step.

Microneedling with PRF at Savage Serenity

PRF, platelet rich fibrin, is made from your own blood. A small sample is drawn from your arm at the visit and spun in a centrifuge, with nothing added, until a layer rich in platelets and growth factors separates out. The draw itself takes under a minute, and the spin a few minutes more.

During PRF microneedling, that layer is applied to the skin’s surface during and after the needle pass, so that it sits in the channels the needles opened. The pairing is aimed at supporting the skin’s own repair response with the platelets and growth factors from your own blood. It is the version many people book for the face, and it is a separate service from injectable PRF, where PRF is injected under the eyes or into the scalp.

What PRF is and how it differs from PRP is its own subject. The short version is that PRF is spun more gently than the older PRP and without an additive, so it forms a soft fibrin gel and releases its growth factors more slowly.

Platelet treatments on facial skin have been studied, and the research has limits worth knowing: most studies have reported promising results, preparation methods vary from one study to the next, and few include a comparison group. Your provider will tell you whether PRF is worth adding for your skin and what it changes about the visit.

When you see results, and how long they last

Results from microneedling build over weeks to months. In the first week or two, as the redness settles, many people notice that their skin looks fresher. The texture and scar changes the series is aimed at come later, as new collagen forms, and keep developing for several months after the last visit.

A series is the normal plan. At Savage Serenity a typical plan is about three visits roughly four weeks apart, set at your consultation to your skin and your concern; for acne scars, dermatology guidance describes three to five treatments two to four weeks apart. In the clinical study described above, results were assessed one month and six months after the third treatment, and the improvement was still present at six months.

How long results last beyond six months was not measured in that study, so the honest answer is that it varies with your skin, your sun exposure, and how you care for it. Your provider will tell you whether a maintenance visit later makes sense for you.

Risks and side effects

Microneedling has expected effects that most people get, and a shorter list of less common risks you should know about before you book. The expected ones are dryness, rough skin, tightness, redness, itching, peeling, discomfort, burning, bruising, bleeding, and crusting, and these typically go away without any treatment after a few days or weeks.

The less common risks are changes in pigment (darkening or lightening of the treated skin), lines on the face, a flare up of cold sores, swollen lymph nodes, and infection. Treated skin can also sting or itch when moisturizer, sunscreen, or makeup goes on in the days afterward. Pigment change is a particular point for darker skin types, where the risk of darkening or lightening after the procedure is higher. It is one of the reasons your provider adjusts the depth and settings to your skin type and asks about your history before treating.

Infection control is the point to ask about at any clinic. The needle cartridge is single use, and the FDA states that reusing a cartridge is unsafe and not consistent with its review of these devices, even if the cartridge is cleaned. Ask your provider whether a new cartridge is opened for each patient and for each session. With PRF, the sample drawn from you has to be kept sterile and used only on you.

Call the clinic if redness spreads or gets worse after the second day, if the skin becomes hot, swollen, or weeping, if you develop a fever, if a cold sore appears, or if dark or light patches develop as the redness fades.

Who should wait, or skip it

Microneedling is not suitable for everyone, and the FDA keeps a list of reasons to wait or to skip it. You may not be a candidate right now if you:

• are tan, or plan to be in the sun in the two weeks after the procedure
• have an active skin infection, an active rash on the face, or a current cold sore outbreak
• are taking isotretinoin for acne, or have taken it in the past six months
• take a blood thinner, including low dose aspirin, or have a clotting or bleeding disorder
• have a weakened immune system, uncontrolled diabetes, hepatitis, or HIV
• have or have had eczema, psoriasis, vitiligo, or an autoimmune disease
• have actinic keratoses, keloid scars or a history of them, warts, birthmarks, or moles in the treatment area
• have a cancer diagnosis, or are having chemotherapy, radiotherapy, or steroid treatment
• are pregnant or breastfeeding
• are allergic to stainless steel or to topical or local anesthetics

Some of these are a hard stop and some are a matter of timing, and your consultation sorts out which applies to you. Tell your provider about a history of cold sores even if you have none now, and tell them about every medication you take, including aspirin, so the plan is set with the full picture.

Aftercare, briefly

For the first day or two your skin is more sensitive than usual, to the sun and to skin care products, especially anything with retinol, glycolic acid, menthol, capsaicin, or alcohol. The practice’s instructions are simple: expect redness for about 24 to 48 hours, skip makeup and active skin care for about a day, and protect your skin from the sun.

Microneedling at Savage Serenity

Savage Serenity MedSpa is a med spa in Fresno led by Angela Hash, BSN, RN, who trains its injector team. The practice’s nurse injectors perform microneedling, with and without PRF, and Dr. Luis Lee is the practice’s medical director and supervising physician.

Microneedling is planned here the way every treatment is planned, as part of a whole face plan. In Angela’s words, “I look at the face as a whole and create a treatment plan that restores balance, supports the way you’re naturally aging, and still keeps you looking like you.” For some people that plan is a microneedling series on its own; for others it pairs with a peel, a neuromodulator, or filler, sequenced so that each has room to work.

Microneedling is priced as a flat rate per visit, quoted after your consultation, and financing options are available through the practice.

Frequently asked questions about microneedling

Does microneedling hurt?

Numbing cream is applied before every treatment, and most people describe the sensation as pressure and a light scratching. Afterward the skin feels warm and tight, like a sunburn, for a day or two.

How many microneedling treatments do I need?

Usually a short series. At Savage Serenity a typical plan is about three visits about four weeks apart, and the number is set at your consultation to your concern and your skin. A single visit is a start; the scar and texture changes come from the series.

What does microneedling do for acne scars?

Depressed acne scars form when the skin makes too little collagen to fill the spot where a breakout was. Microneedling prompts the skin to make new collagen in and around the scar, and over a series the scar edges soften and the surface looks more even. Raised scars and keloids are a different matter, and a history of keloids is a reason to skip the treatment.

What is the difference between microneedling and PRF microneedling?

The needle pass is the same. PRF microneedling adds a blood draw at the start of the visit and a layer of your own platelet rich fibrin applied to the skin during and after the pass. The visit runs longer, and the aftercare is the same.

Can microneedling be done on darker skin?

It can be, with care. Darker skin types carry a higher risk of pigment change after the procedure, so the depth and settings are adjusted, sun protection afterward matters more, and your provider talks through the risk with you before treating.

Book a microneedling consultation in Fresno

A consultation is where microneedling gets decided: whether it fits your concern, whether PRF is worth adding, how many visits you need, and what the series will cost. Request a consultation at Savage Serenity MedSpa in Fresno, and bring your questions and your skin care list.

Keep reading

• Microneedling and PRF microneedling at Savage Serenity, the treatment page
• What to expect during PRF microneedling, blood draw and all
• PRF injectable treatments in Fresno
• The practice’s skin treatments menu, the Savage Treatments
• Angela Hash, BSN, RN

Sources

• U.S. Food and Drug Administration. Microneedling Devices. Content current as of 10/15/2025.
• U.S. Food and Drug Administration. Microneedling Devices: Getting to the Point on Benefits, Risks and Safety (Consumer Update). 10/15/2025.
• U.S. Food and Drug Administration. De Novo Classification Request Decision Summary, DEN160029 (SkinPen Precision System). Granted 03/01/2018.
• American Academy of Dermatology. Microneedling can fade scars, uneven skin tone, and more. Last updated 07/17/2023.
• American Society of Plastic Surgeons. Platelet-Rich Plasma for Cosmetic Facial Procedures: Promising Results, but Evidence Has Limitations. 04/27/2018.