Skin Care Advice

Skin consultations are available with our specialist skin care advisor and lead aesthetician. If you have a more complex skin condition you can also be referred for a consultation with our dermatology specialist consultant nurse, Jan Birch or our consultant Dermatologist, Dr Andrew Winter.

During your consultation, a full medical history will be taken to discuss any underlying medical conditions and your skin concerns, as well as any medications you are taking that may impact on the treatments and skincare advice that we can offer you.

A full skin assessment with be performed using special lighting and technology that allows us to analyse pigmented lesions, sun damage, or any areas of concern. If further concerns are raised about any moles or suspicious lesions on your skin, you will be referred onwards for a dermoscopy assessment with either Jan or Dr Winter.

The products that we use and recommend to our patients have high concentrations of extremely active ingredients, a far cry from what you might find in a high street chemist or supermarket, therefore, you will require a thorough consultation to assess your individual needs before we can create and prescribe a bespoke skincare treatment plan.

As a rule, the greater the severity of the acne, the more areas are affected, meaning that it will extend from the face to the neck first. More than half of those with acne will also have back acne, and around 15% will experience the condition on the chest. Severe cases of acne will affect all areas.

Many people often do not relate non-inflammatory acne with ‘having acne’, dismissing the subtler signs of it as temporary breakouts which go away on their own. However, this can progress as a chronic inflammation of the pilosebaceous unit (the combined unit of the hair shaft, hair follicle, sebaceous gland, and the erector pili muscle that causes hair to stand on end) which leads to more problematic acne and even scarring.

Acne can be broken down into stages or gradings of severity.

Stage 1 – Oily skin with clogged pores – slight acne

Stage 2 – Oily skin with clogged pores – lots of acne

Stage 3 – Oily and inflamed skin with clogged pores – acne with papules and pustules

Stage 4 – Oily and very inflamed skin with clogged pores – severe acne with many papules and pustules

Each progressive stage of acne manifests a variety of different problems, it can be painful and uncomfortable and may lead to scarring. All the stages require some intervention to prevent the progression of the condition.

Cosmeceutical skincare brands are usually only available through clinics and are professional products that bridge the gap between cosmetic skin creams and pharmaceuticals. They are designed to ensure that they contain the exact ingredients needed to target and treat a specific skin condition, but also have those ingredients in the right concentrations or strength to actively work and make a real difference to your skin health. Many of the off-the-shelf products you have tried may contain similar ingredients but in such low concentrations that their effect is minimal compared to higher concentration products that require medical supervision during use. It is for this reason that you must have a consultation first, and we follow up with you to ensure that the skincare programme is working, adjusting the ingredients and products used if required.

Using a variety of topical skincare products, alone or in conjunction with other treatments available at the Blemish Clinic, we can help to treat skin conditions and concerns including, acne, irregular pigmentation, rosacea, dry skin, oily skin, dark circles, dull skin with rough patches or uneven complexion, and many more.

We will tailor a skincare regime, using products from differing brands that best suit your needs.

We are proud stockists of the following brands:

SkinMed

SkinMed offer a variety of dermatological products that are designed to benefit skin health and treat significant skin concerns including acne, rosacea, pigmentation, anti-ageing, scarring, dry skin conditions such as eczema and dermatitis, and sensitive skin. We use the full range available from SkinMed at Blemish Clinic.

Individual brands within their range include Aknicare with superb antibacterial action against acne, Rosacure for rosacea, Synchrovit antioxidants for skin ageing, Thiospot to reduce pigmentation, Terproline for scarring and stretch marks, Fillast to optimise hyaluronic acid in the skin for anti-ageing, Sensicure to calm irritation, plus Hydratime & Nutritime for dry skin, eczema, and psoriasis.

Emepelle

Emepelle is a revolutionary product that has been formulated to treat menopausal skin ageing, specifically targeting, rejuvenating, and restoring skin so it is hydrated, brighter, and firmer.

Menopause, and the decline in levels of oestrogen have a significant effect on skin health and skin ageing, with a 1% loss of collagen per year prior to menopause, in the perimenopausal period, a 30% collagen loss during the first 5 years of the menopause, and subsequently a 2% continued loss of collagen every year post menopause. Emepelle uses their MEP Technology® to address collagen loss in the skin to rejuvenate and restore, whilst rebalancing skin health with the use of retinol, peptides, antioxidants, niacinamide, and hyaluronic acid. MEP does not add oestrogen to the body; however, it rejuvenates menopausal skin by encouraging the skin to behave as if the oestrogen were still there, encouraging key skin cells to activate new oestrogen receptors.

Obagi Medical

Obagi Medical products have the accolade of being the number one physician dispensed skincare range in the world. With over 30 years of clinically proven results, and products that must be medically prescribed, they offer real topically delivered solutions for younger, healthier-looking skin, and those patients suffering from acne and pigmentation problems. Obagi has pioneered many skincare advances, including being the first medical skincare brand to design their clinical research protocols to cover all six skin types across the Fitzpatrick skin spectrum.

Skinceuticals

Skinceuticals products have a nearly 30-year history, founded on pivotal research into the use of topical Vitamin C and the creation of a stable and effective formulation in a serum. Their expansive product range, focused on antioxidants, glycolic acid, retinol, and hyaluronic acid is based on an original philosophy of Prevent, Protect and Correct with products working synergistically to provide a healthier-looking skin with effective anti-ageing results.

Heliocare

Heliocare offers the ultimate in protection from the sun with daily SPFs that contain high-level and broad-spectrum protection against UVA, UVB, visible light, and infrared-A from sun exposure. Products within the range contain ingredients that have been scientifically proven to protect against the sun, repair damage, and prevent premature skin ageing.

We also offer skin camouflage with Dermablend and can advise and provide medical emollients.

We believe in being transparent with our prices and want you to be fully aware and comfortable with the cost of your treatment. A full list of our prices can be found here. We will always agree a final price with you though before treatment commences.