Microneedling With Hyaluronic Acid and 15% Vitamin C Beat PRP on Acne Scars in a Small Split-Face Study

Platelet-rich plasma, made by spinning a patient's own blood, is a common add-on to microneedling for acne scars and usually costs more than a topical serum. A study published on 14 July 2026 in the Journal of Cosmetic Dermatology compared it head to head with a cheaper pairing: a 1 percent hyaluronic acid serum combined with 15 percent vitamin C.

The researchers in Egypt used a split-face design with 34 patients aged 17 to 43, most of them women. Every patient had both faces treated with a Dermapen at needle depths of 1.5 to 2 millimetres. The right side received PRP and the left side received the hyaluronic acid and vitamin C combination. Treatment ran for four sessions three weeks apart, with antibiotics, sunscreen and moisturiser afterwards.

Both halves of the face improved on the Goodman and Baron scar grading scale. The hyaluronic acid and vitamin C side improved by more, and the difference between sides was statistically significant. On a quartile response scale, just over half the patients had an excellent response on that side, compared with about one in seven on the PRP side.

Side effects were similar on both halves: redness and swelling that settled within two to three days, with no meaningful difference between the two treatments. The authors declared no funding and no conflicts of interest.

There are clear reasons for caution. Thirty-four patients is a small group, follow-up ended twelve weeks after the final session, and the results rest on clinical grading rather than three-dimensional imaging or other objective measurement, which the authors list among their own limitations. And the right side always received PRP, so any systematic difference between left and right halves cannot be separated out.

It is also worth being clear about what was tested. Vitamin C here was pushed into skin through microneedle channels in a clinic, which is a very different situation from applying a serum to intact skin at home, and the study says nothing about the latter.