PMD Personal Microderm Review.


In the world of skincare, I’m a firm believer in the do it yourself, at home treatment.  It’s convenient, often works out to be relatively economical and there’s no pressure to commit to a series of sessions if you don’t feel something is working for your skin.  There’s also that small matter of denial.  If I’m using a product designed for at home use, while it will be effective, it’s not going to be ‘salon strength’ or ‘strictly for the use of medical professionals’ which means that I’m neither ageing or self absorbed.  I’m simply making the most of what’s available to everyone over the internet.  Isn’t denial grand?

A few weeks ago, a representative of Personal Microderm got in touch with me with regard to their home microdermabrasian system.  PMD already has a well established market in the US and they are now looking at entering the Australian market as well.  At the moment, the brand is available to Australia through the official website that I’ve linked to.  An Australian website is in the works and should be live soon.

The international hand held device costs $181 USD.  Skin care is also available online as well.

PMD with white test disc attached.

Included with the PMD unit are a power cord and a variety of adapters for different regions of the world.

PMD needs to be plugged in to be used but it’s lightweight and just a little longer than a stapler, as shown above.

Extra discs included with the PMD device.  2 sets of ‘sensitive’ discs for face and body and 1 ‘medium’ set.

Included with the device are a range of microdermabrasian discs.  The blue are for sensitive skin and the green discs provide a ‘medium’ degree of exfoliation.  PMD recommends green for age spots and skin discolouration.  The red ‘coarse’ discs provide the highest intensity treatment.  Each set of discs retails for $14.95 USD.  It is recommended that discs be changed every 2 – 4 treatments and that a treatment be only performed once a week and several days between using any retinoic acid based skincare.  PMD can be used on both the face and body, the larger discs being more suitable for use on the body.

An instructional video is included in the easy to follow manual and I’ve just popped it in this review for your interest.  The key points are:

  • to use the PMD only on clean, dry skin
  • to make sure that a good seal between the disc and your skin is achieved, you should hear a ‘pop’ as the seal is released at the end of each pass 
  • to only use a maximum of two passes over any part of the skin
  • to avoid using PMD on the skin around your eyes
  • when you’ve finished the treatment, apply toner and then your usual skincare.

How I used PMD

I’ve been using PMD for 3 weeks now.  I began with the white training disc and then used the blue disc a week later.  I’ve now completed 2 treatments with the blue disc.  I’ve only used PMD on my face and followed up each treatment with my regular skin care (Kiehl’s and La Clinica).

Pros

  • Easy to use and painless.  Excellent instructional video and manual.  The treatment discs just snap on and off the handset.
  • Very quick and easy to incorporate into your routine at home.  Literally took minutes to do my face.
  • A reasonable price when you compare it to the cost of ongoing sessions with a beautician.  When I last checked here in Sydney, microdermabrasian at a salon costs around $99 per session.  I’ve no idea how much it would cost with a cosmetic physician, but it’s probably going to be more.
  • The PMD unit is lightweight and can be easily stored away at home or in your luggage if you’re travelling with it.
Cons
  • I found it a bit difficult to get a good seal with the PMD device over my forehead.
  • The unit does make a low pitched humming that’s about as loud as an electric shaver. 
  • May be awkward to use if you prefer cordless devices like the Clarisonic.
  • There is some maintenance involved to keep the suction head clean.
Effect on my skin
  • Even after the first treatment using the white training disc, my skin was noticeably softer.  Any skincare that I applied to my face seemed to ‘sink in’ more quickly.
  • The effect lasted a couple of days after the first treatment.
  • Using the blue treatment disc produced a more intense exfoliation, lasting a few days each week as well.  I did have a little redness on my forehead this time but that faded after a few hours.  There was no stinging though.
  • After subsequent treatments, I’m noticing that my skin glows and looks healthier immediately.  It also looks clearer.
  • I haven’t yet seen any affect on skin discolouration.  Though to be fair, this is likely to be a more long term benefit.
Final thoughts
  • The PMD system is easy to use and delivered pretty rapid results for me.  The results are comparable to what I’ve been getting with Dr Gross’ Alpha Beta Daily Face Wipes but without the stinging.  Going forward, it will be interesting to see what effect PMD will have on skin discolouration.
  • Not having had professional microdermabrasion done, I can’t really comment on how my results compare to treatments under the hands of experts.  I’m pretty happy with my results so far,  The convenience and price point of PMD are winning factors for me.

The PMD system was sent to me by a representative of Personal Microderm for my review and consideration and I thank them for their support of this blog.


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