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Resurface, Rebuild, Relax: The November Med Spa Specials I’d Actually Book Before the Holidays

November Med Spa Specials flyer, Renew Restore Revive promotions at The Med Spa at Southwest Plastic Surgery East and West, El Paso Texas, Frank Agullo MD FACS

Resurface, Rebuild, Relax: The November Med Spa Specials I’d Actually Book Before the Holidays

It’s November here in El Paso and Thanksgiving is a few weeks away. The office holiday party happens after that and I bet for some of you visiting your in-laws happens soon after that. Every week this month I get some version of this question: “How do I look rested in six weeks without anybody knowing I did anything?”

Resurface the skin’s surface, stimulate collagen production in the deep layers and relax the facial lines that make you look tired. Three different levels of the face, three different time courses and done in time for Christmas if you start in November. That is the whole November board.

Surgeon-to-surgeon, here are the treatments I’d do if I was on the November board: a Sciton laser treatment I’d do on myself, a microneedling package that I think trumps PRP, and a neurotoxin special with numbers that make sense.

And they’re all worth doing. Let me explain.

Renew. Profrac and the Micro Laser Peel, 20% Off.

Sciton’s Erbium laser (2940 nm) comes in a few flavors but the two I use most often are ProFrac (fractional ablative) and Micro Laser Peel (superficial ablative).

Erbium lasers ablate (vaporize) skin. Erbium laser energy is preferentially absorbed by water, and since skin is mostly water, especially at the surface, there’s very little wasted energy. Ablation happens where you aim it and the heat falls off quickly. That makes Erbium accurate and predictable, with less collateral thermal injury and more predictable healing. This is one of the ways it is kinder than a CO2 laser.

A Micro Laser Peel is a light-based peel. Ablation of the skin’s surface is uniform (not fractional) and the depth is tunable, in microns. A peel done with a laser is more consistent than a peel done with a chemical reaction on a moving target (your face). But a peel is a peel, and in the right hands either one can outperform the other in a given skin.

ProFrac creates columns (fractional) of ablation that can be taken deeper than a Micro Laser Peel, and leaves un-ablated columns of skin in between to speed healing. Patients ask what the point of ProFrac is if we are already doing a Micro Laser Peel. The answer is depth. Micro Laser Peel plus ProFrac is a combo I do a lot: uniform, superficial resurfacing of the face plus deeper fractional ablation to stimulate collagen in the dermis. Two levels of the skin treated in one visit with one recovery.

Facelifts and deep plane neck lifts reposition the deeper structures of the face and neck and tighten the deep investing layers, but they don’t improve skin quality. Laser resurfacing after a facelift or deep plane neck lift is how you improve the skin itself. This is another way Erbium lasers shine: they heal more predictably than CO2 lasers, which is kinder to patients who are already healing from surgery. Micro Laser Peel to uniformly resurface the skin and ProFrac to stimulate collagen production in the deeper layers of the face and neck.

For patients who are not surgical candidates (or who don’t want surgery anytime soon) Micro Laser Peel and ProFrac are great stand-alone treatments to improve skin quality. Micro Laser Peel is great for uniform textural change like sun damage and ProFrac is great for deeper lines. Recovery is a little longer than non-ablative lasers. Expect a sunburn feel for a day or two and pink, flaky skin for three to five days after ProFrac, and just flaky skin (depending on the aggressiveness of the treatment) for about a weekend after Micro Laser Peel. Apply numbing cream for forty-five minutes before treatment. Expect a warm sunburn sensation during treatment. Back to normal makeup by day seven. Do it three weeks before Thanksgiving and you are healed and glowing when the family shows up.

Post-inflammatory hyperpigmentation can happen after Erbium laser treatments in darker skin types (Fitzpatrick IV to VI), but it can often be mitigated by altering the treatment parameters, pre-treating the skin, and sometimes choosing Micro Laser Peel over ProFrac. Always discuss candidacy before booking.

Book a Micro Laser Peel or ProFrac in November and get 20% off. That applies to single treatments too. How many will you need? If you have substantial sun damage I might recommend two treatments three to six weeks apart. If you just want to look your best for an event, one treatment three weeks before should do it.

Restore. The Glow Package: Microneedling with Ariessence Pure PDGF+, $750.

I said this is the quiet upgrade over PRP, and I meant it.

This month, one microneedling-plus-growth-factor treatment is $750. It’s called the Glow Package, and you’ll leave with a goodie bag (skincare worth taking home). Sorry, we can’t tell you what’s in the bag. That would ruin the surprise.

Microneedling stimulates collagen by creating thousands of controlled injuries (microchannels) in the skin at a depth we set for you. Your body responds by sending fibroblasts (the collagen-producing cells) to each microchannel to lay down new collagen and elastin over the following weeks. Skin becomes smoother, firmer and more radiant, and the pores tighten up.

PDGF (platelet-derived growth factor) is arguably the most potent growth factor in human wound biology. PRP (platelet-rich plasma) is made from your own blood in the office: we draw blood, spin it down to concentrate the platelets and apply it to the skin during microneedling. Platelets carry growth factors (including PDGF) that signal cells in the skin to make more collagen. PRP works. I have used it for a long time. Problem: the amount of growth factor varies from patient to patient and even from morning to afternoon. Sometimes PRP is great, sometimes not so much.

Ariessence Pure PDGF+ is a PDGF rich topical that delivers more PDGF than you’re likely getting from your own PRP. It’s consistent from tube to tube and visit to visit. No blood draw required. It’s my favorite upgrade for patients who have already tried PRP microneedling or are hesitant about sticking themselves for their own blood.

Expect pink skin for a day or two after treatment, glow two weeks later and continued collagen production for four to six weeks thereafter. Best results after three treatments four weeks apart followed by one treatment every three to four months for maintenance.

Revive. Buy 50 Units of Neurotoxin, Receive 10 Units Free.

Straight from me on the November math: pay for 50, get treated for 60.

Neurotoxins relax muscles to keep dynamic lines from becoming permanent wrinkles. All four neurotoxins we offer (Botox, Dysport, Xeomin, and Daxxify) have slightly different times to onset (time until you start noticing changes), time to peak effect (when it’s working the best), and duration. When choosing which neurotoxin to use for you I take those factors into account as well as which areas we’re treating, how much I plan to inject, and your goals and timeline for seeing results. The special works with any of the four.

Sixty units is enough to treat all three upper-face areas in most people: the forehead (frontalis), the horizontal forehead lines; the frown (corrugators and procerus), the vertical lines between the brows; and the crow’s feet (lateral orbicularis oculi), the lines at the outer corner of the eyes that flare out when you smile. Wrinkles form where the skin repeatedly creases when the muscle underneath contracts, which is why we assess muscle activity before injecting. It is also why I’ll ask you to raise your eyebrows, frown and smile when you’re sitting in my chair.

Underdosed Botox doesn’t soften lines enough. Overdosed Botox leads to a frozen appearance on camera. For most patients, 60 units injected strategically softens lines in the upper face and restores a refreshed appearance.

Neurotoxin peaks at seven to fourteen days after injection and lasts three to four months (sometimes more or less, depending on which product we use, the dose, and your individual biology). If you have holiday pictures coming up, plan on getting it done two weeks before so it is fully effective before you hit the town.

A Clean Comparison

Special What it is Investment Best for
Renew Sciton Erbium platform: ProFrac (fractional) and/or Micro Laser Peel (full-field) resurfacing 20% off, single sessions qualify Sun damage, fine lines, dullness, surface texture
Restore Microneedling with Ariessence Pure PDGF+ (Glow Package) $750 per session with a complimentary goodie bag Collagen rebuild, brightness, firmness, pore quality
Revive Botulinum toxin injectable for the upper face Buy 50 units, receive 10 units free Softening forehead lines, frown lines, and crow’s feet

Where to Come, East or West

All of our November specials can be done at either of our El Paso locations.

Eastside: 1387 George Dieter Drive, Building C, El Paso, Texas 79936.

Westside: 5925 Silver Springs Drive, Suite C, El Paso, Texas 79912.

Same team, same protocols, same device inventory on both sides of town. Pick whichever side fits your week. The Med Spa page has the full menu, the laser treatments page has more on the Sciton platform, and the injectables page covers the neurotoxin menu.

A Note on Who Is Doing the Work

The name on the door matters here. Mine. I’m Mayo Clinic plastic surgery fellowship trained, double board-certified, a Clinical Associate Professor at Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center Paul L. Foster School of Medicine and a Castle Connolly Top Doctor for thirteen years running. The Med Spa at Southwest Plastic Surgery practices medicine the way I practice medicine, on protocols I designed and with staff I trained.

Medicine is complicated, and procedures like ablative laser resurfacing, microneedling with PDGF or neurotoxin injections deserve to be done by an expert. The hand on the device is the whole treatment.

Ready to Talk?

Call our Med Spa at (915) 590-7907 to book any of the November specials at the Eastside (1387 George Dieter Building C) or Westside (5925 Silver Springs Suite C) office, or text 1-866-814-0038. For surgical or combined consults, call my main office at (915) 590-7900 or book online at agulloplasticsurgery.com/appointments. Follow me at @RealDrWorldWide on Instagram, TikTok, and Snapchat, @Agullo on X, or @AgulloPlasticSurgery on Facebook. #StayBeautiful

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PDGF vs PRP After Microneedling: Why I Switched to Ariessence pure PDGF+

A patient receives radiofrequency microneedling at the cheek, illustrating the post-procedure window when topical recombinant pure PDGF (Ariessence pure PDGF+) is applied. Reviewed by Dr. Frank Agullo, MD, FACS, double board-certified plastic surgeon in El Paso, Texas.

After the Needles: The Growth Factor That Earned Its Spot Next to My Morpheus8

Last month a longtime patient sat down on my Morpheus8 table, looked at the small kit on the tray, and asked me where the blood draw was. We had done platelet-rich plasma after every one of her treatments for the past five years. Tube, centrifuge, twelve-minute wait, supernatant painted onto freshly needled skin, small bandage on the inner arm at the end. That was the rhythm of the visit.

I told her we were doing something different this time. A small kit, mixed in a minute, no needle in the arm. Same idea as PRP. A cleaner version of the same idea.

The product is called Ariessence pure PDGF+. The molecule inside is recombinant platelet-derived growth factor BB. I have been using it on a subset of my Morpheus8 patients since the start of the year, and over the past few months it has quietly replaced PRP in my MedSpa for most post-procedure protocols. This is the long version of why.

What PDGF actually is

Platelet-derived growth factor is one of the body’s lead first-responder proteins at any tissue injury. When platelets release at a wound site, PDGF recruits fibroblasts to lay down collagen, calls in the cells that build new microvasculature, and helps coordinate the rest of the early healing response. It is the most studied tissue growth factor in regenerative medicine. Four FDA-approved drug products contain it. Over the past twenty-eight years, more than five and a half million patients have been treated with PDGF-containing FDA-approved products in non-cosmetic medical indications such as periodontal regeneration and diabetic foot ulcer healing. The molecule has a long safety record.

For most of the past decade, the way clinicians delivered PDGF to skin in an aesthetic context was indirect. We drew the patient’s own blood, spun it down, and applied platelet-rich plasma to freshly microneedled skin. PDGF was in there. So were dozens of other proteins, in concentrations that varied with the patient and the centrifuge run.

Recombinant pure PDGF is the next step. The protein is produced in cultured cells from a human gene sequence and purified to a single active species. The label calls it sh-Polypeptide-59 Dimer. There are no human-derived components in the formulation. The dose is controlled by the manufacturer and is the same in every kit.

Why topical, and why right after a microchanneling procedure

Topical PDGF on intact skin is a moisturizer with an interesting label. The protein is too large to cross an intact stratum corneum in a meaningful concentration. Healthy skin keeps macromolecules out. That is the barrier doing its job.

Topical PDGF in the brief window after Morpheus8, RF microneedling, fractional laser, or a medium-depth peel is a different story. The procedure has just opened thousands of microchannels into the dermis. The growth factor reaches the compartment that is asking for it. The window closes within hours.

That is why this product is sold to clinicians, not on a shelf at Sephora. Without a procedure to pair it with, you have an expensive serum.

The Gold 2025 study

In September 2025, Gold and colleagues published a randomized, evaluator-blinded, controlled trial in the Journal of Cosmetic Dermatology. Subjects between thirty and sixty years old got a single Morpheus8 session and were randomized to receive either bland Aquaphor or topical recombinant pure PDGF-BB immediately after. Patients were graded at seven and thirty days using the Clinical Global Aesthetic Improvement Score and Canfield Visia objective imaging.

The PDGF group did better. The difference on the global aesthetic score at thirty days was statistically significant. The PDGF group performed favorably on six of the seven Visia metrics. Patient-reported outcomes were better on the experience measures. No serious adverse events were reported.

The manufacturer is explicit about one caveat in the published reprint, and I will repeat it. The exact formulation in the Gold trial is not identical to the marketed Ariessence product. The trial supports the use of topical recombinant pure PDGF-BB after RF microneedling as a category. It is not a label claim for a specific commercial bottle. I tell patients this clearly. They appreciate it.

Where it sits next to PRP, PRF, and exosomes

The regenerative aesthetics category is crowded. Here is how I sort the actual contenders in my room.

What it is Source Blood draw? Predictability of dose Where it fits in 2026
Aquaphor (bland emollient) Petroleum jelly No Total, no biological signal Default barrier, comparator in trials
PRP (platelet-rich plasma) Patient’s own blood, single spin Yes Variable, patient to patient Reasonable. Less predictable than recombinant.
PRF (platelet-rich fibrin) Patient’s own blood, slower spin Yes Slightly more consistent than PRP Some practices prefer it. Not a step change.
Exosomes Cultured stem cell media (donor-derived) No Manufacturer-dependent. Regulatory status unsettled. I have not adopted these.
Ariessence pure PDGF+ Recombinant rhPDGF-BB in HA serum No Identical dose every kit Default after Morpheus8, RF microneedling, fractional laser, or medium-depth peel.

The table is not exhaustive. Topical recombinant epidermal growth factor preparations also exist, for instance. But it captures the choices a patient is realistically being offered today.

Who is the right candidate

Anyone scheduled for Morpheus8, RF microneedling, fractional laser resurfacing, or a medium-depth chemical peel who wants the cleanest possible thirty-day skin. Anyone who has always disliked the blood draw side of PRP. Anyone who has had wildly different PRP results over the years and wants to know whether a controlled dose evens out the experience.

It is not a stand-alone serum. It is not an injectable. It is not a substitute for sunscreen, a retinoid, or the procedure itself. Patients with active facial infection, active inflammatory dermatoses on the treatment area, or any contraindication to the underlying procedure are not candidates until those issues resolve.

What it is not

Ariessence pure PDGF+ is sold as a topical cosmetic. It is not an FDA-approved drug. The Cosmetic Product Listing number is on file with the agency. Cosmetics in the United States do not require FDA pre-market approval. The agency does require honest labeling, prohibits drug-style claims, and oversees safety and adverse-event reporting. Ariessence operates within those constraints.

The product is not approved to diagnose, treat, cure, mitigate, or prevent any disease or condition. It is not for injection. The four FDA-approved PDGF-containing drug products (GEM 21S, Augment, Augment Injectable, Regranex) are unrelated formulations approved for non-cosmetic indications. Their decades of safety data inform the molecule’s general safety profile. They do not transfer regulatory approval to the cosmetic.

I tell patients all of this before we add it to a treatment plan. The Ariessence label does the same.

Why I added it to my MedSpa stack

PRP after microneedling has earned its place over the years. I am not knocking it. A controlled, recombinant dose of the lead growth factor in the platelet release is, on the data we have today, a little better.

Workflow is the second piece. PRP requires a draw, a centrifuge, a twelve-minute wait, and a patient who is okay with a needle in her arm before a needle in her face. Ariessence is mixed in under a minute on the same tray as everything else. My MedSpa team prefers it. My patients prefer not having to roll up a sleeve.

The third piece is consistency with how I think about aesthetic medicine. Preservation, precision, controlled dosing, predictable outcomes. PDGF is the most studied tissue growth factor in regenerative medicine, with more than a hundred clinical trials and a twenty-eight-year FDA-approved drug heritage in non-cosmetic indications. Bringing the recombinant pure version into the cosmetic side of the practice fits.

From Vampire Facials to recombinant pure PDGF

If you have followed me for a while, the throughline matters. The 2019 piece on this blog argued for PRP after microneedling. The science was right then. The recombinant era is a refinement, not a refutation. The molecule is the same lead actor in the platelet release. The vehicle is cleaner and the dose more dependable. I would rather a patient be reading a 2026 update than a 2019 piece pretending to still be current.

Why choose Dr. Agullo for skin in El Paso?

Double board-certified by the American Board of Plastic Surgery and the American Board of Surgery. Fellow of the American College of Surgeons. Mayo Clinic plastic surgery fellowship. Clinical Associate Professor of Plastic Surgery at Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center. Affiliate Professor at the University of Texas at El Paso. Castle Connolly Top Doctor for thirteen consecutive years. Texas Super Doctors Hall of Fame, 2025. Aesthetic Everything Top Plastic Surgeon, 2026. Morpheus8 in active rotation in our MedSpa, paired with Ariessence pure PDGF+ as the post-procedure topical when the indication fits.

We run a clinic and a MedSpa under one roof for one reason. The arc of facial aging is decades long, and you should not have to drive across town to handle it.

Ready to talk?

If you are thinking about Morpheus8, an RF microneedling course, fractional laser, or a peel, and you want to understand what your skin care protocol should look like in the thirty days after, the most useful forty-five minutes of your year is a consultation with the surgeon who would actually plan it. I will tell you whether Ariessence pure PDGF+ is the right add-on for your treatment, whether you are better off with a different combination, or whether the procedure you are asking for is not the one you actually need.

Call (915) 590-7900, text 1-866-814-0038, or book online at agulloplasticsurgery.com. Follow along on social at @RealDrWorldWide on Instagram, TikTok, and Snapchat, @Agullo on X, or @AgulloPlasticSurgery on Facebook. #StayBeautiful