$1,200
RF microneedling + CO2
Dr. Sabeen Munib, MD
Usually 3
Depends on mode
Overview
Two Different Treatments on One Platform
Secret PRO is best understood not as a single treatment but as two, carried on the same platform. The radiofrequency microneedling mode drives insulated needles into the skin and delivers energy at a chosen depth, which is how it reaches the dermis without destroying the surface. The fractional CO2 mode does the opposite, working at the surface to resurface texture directly.
That matters because they solve different problems. Depth addresses laxity and the structural component of scarring. Surface resurfacing addresses texture, fine lines and tone. A patient whose complaint is only one of those does not need both, and treating with both when one would do simply buys extra downtime.
Dr. Sabeen Munib selects which mode or combination fits your skin at consultation. The price is the same either way, so there is no incentive here to add a mode you do not need.
Why Patients Choose Spectrum
The Mode Is a Clinical Decision, Not an Upsell
The most common way patients are overtreated with a dual-mode platform is being sold the combination by default. Combining modes doubles the recovery and does not double the result if only one of the two problems is present in your skin.
Dr. Munib has practiced cosmetic dermatology in the Irvine area for more than fifteen years and performs these treatments personally. In California, radiofrequency microneedling and laser resurfacing cannot be delegated to an esthetician under any level of supervision.
Where a different platform in the practice suits your concern better, that is what will be recommended. Secret PRO is one of several tools here and it is not the answer to everything.
15+
2
100%
$1,200
The Modes
What Each Mode Does, and When We Use It
Three ways this platform is used. Which one applies is decided at consultation.
RF microneedling mode
Treat laxity and the structural part of scarring
Fractional CO2 mode
Resurface texture, fine lines and tone
Combined protocol
Treat depth and surface in one visit
The series
Build the result across visits rather than one aggressive pass
Default to both modes
Combining modes because the platform can, rather than because your skin needs it, buys you extra recovery for no extra benefit. If one mode fits, one mode is what is used.
How Radiofrequency Microneedling and CO2 Differ
Radiofrequency microneedling heats tissue from the needle tips at a set depth. The insulation along the needle shaft is what protects the surface, which is why this mode can work in the dermis while leaving the outer skin comparatively intact.
Fractional CO2 is absorbed by water in the tissue and ablates it. Rather than treating the whole surface, it creates a grid of treated columns surrounded by untouched skin, which is what allows the area to heal faster than full ablative resurfacing would.
Why they are complementary rather than interchangeable
Neither mode substitutes for the other. Radiofrequency will not smooth surface texture, because it does not remove surface tissue. CO2 will not lift laxity from the dermis, because it does not deliver energy that deep in fractional mode.
This is the whole argument for a dual platform, and also the reason the selection matters. The question at consultation is not which setting is strongest, it is which layer holds your actual complaint.
Which Fits Which
Which Mode Suits Which Concern
Read down the left column to what sounds like your skin.
Combined Approaches
What This Is Often Sequenced With
Candidacy
Who This Suits, and Who We Treat Cautiously
The consultation establishes which layer holds your concern. Laxity, surface texture, scarring and pigment produce overlapping complaints and are treated differently, so the assessment sets the mode rather than the other way round.
How Dr. Munib decides
She assesses skin thickness, existing facial volume, skin type and pigment risk, the depth of the concern and prior treatment response. Where pigment risk is high the CO2 mode is approached conservatively or a test area is used, and where the concern is purely surface or purely structural, only the relevant mode is used.
Often a good fit
Acne scarring, surface texture, enlarged pores, early laxity, or a combination of these in a patient with realistic expectations of a gradual result and the ability to plan around recovery.
Where we are cautious or decline
Active inflammatory skin disease or infection, recent isotretinoin use, pregnancy, an already thin or hollow face where deep treatment risks volume loss, or an expectation of a surgical degree of lift.
Timeline
What to Expect and When
Recovery varies considerably with which mode was used and at what settings. Timelines describe the usual pattern and are not a promise of any individual result.
Risks
Documented Risks
These apply to radiofrequency microneedling and to fractional ablative resurfacing. They are listed in full rather than summarised.
Pigment change
Post-inflammatory hyperpigmentation is a recognised risk, particularly in darker Fitzpatrick types and particularly with the ablative mode. Risk is assessed individually and settings adjusted, and a test area may be used first.
Burns, blistering and scarring
Excessive energy, incorrect depth or poor technique can burn tissue and scar. This is why the procedure is restricted to trained medical operators and cannot be delegated to an esthetician in California.
Facial fat loss
Radiofrequency delivered too deep at too high a thermal dose can injure subcutaneous fat and reduce volume. On October 15, 2025 the FDA issued a safety communication on radiofrequency microneedling referencing reported burns, scarring, facial fat loss, disfigurement and nerve damage. It applies to this category, including this platform.
Infection and delayed healing
Ablative resurfacing creates an open wound pattern. Aftercare instructions exist to prevent infection and are not optional. Cold sore history should be disclosed so prophylaxis can be considered.
Prolonged redness
Erythema after ablative treatment can persist for weeks in some patients, longer than the peeling itself. This is expected rather than a complication, but it is worth planning around.
Risks, realistic expectations and the FDA communication are reviewed at consultation and documented in consent before treatment.
How risk is limited here
Conservative settings across a series rather than maximum settings in one pass, depth chosen for your skin thickness and facial volume rather than a fixed protocol, a test area where pigment risk is a concern, and the physician performing the treatment personally.
Aftercare and Recovery
Cost
What Affects Your Cost
Secret PRO is $1,200 per session at Spectrum. The price is the same whether one mode or both are used, so the selection is made on clinical grounds rather than on cost.
Most patients are advised a series of about three, and the full plan is priced before treatment begins so there is no running total during the course. Where a combined approach with another treatment is appropriate, that is quoted at the same time.
Pay monthly with
The Comparison Question
Secret PRO, Morpheus8 and Profound RF
Patients arrive having read about one of these and wanting to know whether we have it. They are all radiofrequency microneedling systems and they differ in needle depth, array density and whether a resurfacing mode is included. None of them is categorically better than the others.
What separates outcomes in this category is not the badge on the platform. It is the depth and energy chosen for your skin, and whether the person choosing them examined you first. The FDA safety communication of October 2025 makes the same point from the regulatory side, urging patients toward licensed providers with training and experience.
We set out the Morpheus8 comparison in full on its own page, including where Morpheus8 is the better suited tool for reaching the subcutaneous fat layer, and what we accepted as a trade by choosing differently.
Explore
Related Treatments
Radio Frequency Micro-needling
The RF microneedling overview, covering the category and our platforms.
Morpheus8 vs Matrix
Morpheus8 compared in full, including where it is the better suited tool.
Matrix Pro
Candela Matrix PRO, our other RF microneedling platform.
Fractional CO2 Laser
Fractional CO2 resurfacing as a standalone treatment.
Laser and Energy Devices
The full laser and energy roster and how the platforms differ.
Questions
Frequently Asked Questions
Secret PRO is a platform that carries two separate treatment modes: radiofrequency microneedling, which delivers energy at depth through insulated needles, and fractional CO2, which resurfaces the skin surface. They are different treatments that happen to live on the same machine, and they can be used alone or in one combined session depending on what your skin needs.
Profound RF is a different radiofrequency microneedling system, and patients often compare the two. The practical difference is that Secret PRO adds a fractional CO2 resurfacing arm on the same platform, so surface texture can be treated in the same visit as the deeper radiofrequency work. Whether that combination suits you depends on whether surface texture is actually part of your complaint, and Dr. Munib will say so if it is not.
No. Both are radiofrequency microneedling devices and they are frequently compared, but they differ in needle depth, array design and whether a resurfacing mode is included. We set that comparison out in full on our Morpheus8 page, including where Morpheus8 is the better suited tool and what the FDA safety communication of October 2025 says about this category.
Secret PRO is $1,200 per session at Spectrum. Most patients are advised a short series rather than a single treatment, and the plan is priced before it begins. Which modes are used affects the session length rather than the price.
Typically three, spaced four to six weeks apart, with collagen remodelling continuing for months afterward. The number depends on the depth of the concern and how your skin responds to the first treatment. Anyone quoting a fixed number before examining your skin is guessing.
It depends on which mode is used. Radiofrequency microneedling alone usually means redness and a sandpaper texture for a few days. Adding the fractional CO2 mode increases both the visible peeling and the recovery time, because that mode removes surface tissue by design. The trade is discussed before treatment so you can plan around it.
Dr. Sabeen Munib, MD. Radiofrequency microneedling and laser resurfacing are medical procedures that cannot be delegated to an esthetician in California regardless of supervision, so the physician who assesses your skin is the one who selects the depth and energy and performs the treatment.