Multi-spectral imaging that measures what's on your skin and beneath it. Most useful as a starting point you measure against six months later — less useful as a one-time scan telling you things you can already see.
VISIA photographs your face under several lighting conditions — including ultraviolet, which reveals sun damage that hasn't surfaced yet — and measures eight characteristics against a database of people your age and skin type. It's a measurement tool, not a diagnosis. The real value is comparing two scans months apart to see whether a treatment actually did anything. First analysis is complimentary with consultation.
Ultraviolet light penetrates deeper than visible light, so the UV photograph shows melanin that has accumulated but hasn't yet surfaced.
The standard photograph shows your face. The UV image frequently shows something considerably more damaged — scattered pigment across areas that look clear in the mirror.
That's sun exposure you've already had, sitting in the skin, waiting. In a coastal climate where people spend decades outdoors without thinking about it, this is usually the most useful thing the analysis produces.
It's also the strongest argument for daily sun protection anyone will ever show you — and that costs nothing.
That right-hand column matters. VISIA measures; it doesn't interpret. Whether pigment is melasma or sun damage determines the entire treatment plan, and getting it wrong makes melasma worse — that distinction is clinical, not photographic.
VISIA photographs and measures pigment. It has no capacity to distinguish a benign spot from an atypical one, and a good VISIA score means nothing about whether a particular lesion is safe.
Anything changing, growing, irregular in border or colour, itching, or bleeding needs evaluation by a dermatologist — not a complexion scan and not cosmetic treatment. Any lesion of concern noticed during analysis here is referred rather than treated.
A single analysis mostly confirms what you already know. You can see your own wrinkles and pores in a mirror. The UV image is the exception — that genuinely shows you something new.
The value is in comparison. Two scans six months apart, under identical lighting and positioning, show objectively whether something changed.
That matters because memory is unreliable about faces. People adapt to their own appearance within weeks. Someone who has finished a laser course frequently can't tell whether it worked, because they've forgotten what they looked like at the start. Photographs taken under controlled conditions don't have that problem.
It cuts both ways, which is the point. A scan showing no meaningful change after a course of treatment is useful information — it means stopping, or trying something else, rather than continuing.
VISIA compares your measurements against a database of people of similar age and skin type, producing a percentile for each category.
That's useful context. It's also easily over-interpreted, and worth naming plainly: a low percentile in one category doesn't mean you need treatment. It means a machine measured a characteristic and compared it to a database.
Skin analysis is commonly used across this industry as a sales instrument — a percentile that produces anxiety sells a treatment plan. A scan that makes someone feel worse about a normal finding has done more harm than good.
Here it's used to set a baseline and to decide whether treatment is warranted at all. Sometimes the answer is that it isn't.
Arrive with clean skin — no makeup, sunscreen, or topical products, since anything on the surface affects the imaging.
You rest your face in a positioning frame while a series of photographs are captured under different lighting conditions, including a brief ultraviolet exposure comparable to a normal camera flash. It takes a few minutes and involves no discomfort.
The system processes the images and produces the measurements. Dr. Mortazavi reviews them with you — which is the part that matters, since the numbers on their own don't tell you what to do about anything.
Every six to twelve months for general tracking, or before and after a treatment course to measure whether it produced real change.
More often than that rarely adds information. Skin changes over months, not weeks, and scanning more frequently mostly measures lighting variation and how much water you drank.
The UV image is the reason I offer this free with a consultation. Showing someone the sun damage sitting under their skin does more for their sunscreen habits than anything I can say, and that's worth more long-term than most treatments I sell. The rest of the analysis is useful mainly as a baseline — and I'd rather use it to establish whether something worked than to convince someone they need it in the first place.
What does VISIA skin analysis measure?
Surface and sub-surface skin characteristics captured across several lighting conditions: pigmented spots, wrinkles, texture, pore appearance, UV damage, brown pigment below the surface, red or vascular areas, and porphyrins, which indicate bacteria within pores. The results are compared against a database of people of similar age and skin type to produce percentile scores.
Is VISIA worth doing?
As a baseline you measure against later, yes. Comparing scans six months apart shows objectively whether a treatment changed anything, rather than relying on memory. As a single one-time scan it is less useful, because most of what it shows on the surface you can already see in a mirror. The exception is the ultraviolet image, which reveals sun damage that has not yet surfaced and is genuinely informative the first time.
Can VISIA diagnose skin conditions?
No. VISIA measures and quantifies what is present. It does not distinguish melasma from post-inflammatory pigmentation or sun damage, it does not identify suspicious lesions, and it cannot determine why something is happening. A physician interprets the imaging alongside history and examination. Any lesion of concern requires proper evaluation, not a complexion scan.
What is the UV photograph showing?
Melanin that sits below the visible surface. Ultraviolet light penetrates deeper than visible light and reveals pigment that has accumulated from sun exposure but has not yet become apparent to the eye. This is why the UV image frequently looks dramatically worse than the standard photograph, and why it is the most useful single component of the analysis for someone who has spent years in a coastal climate.
Are the percentile scores meaningful?
They compare your measurements against a database of people of similar age and skin type, which provides useful context. They are not a health assessment and they are easily over-interpreted. A low percentile in one category does not mean treatment is required, and a scan that produces anxiety about a normal finding has done more harm than good. The scores are most useful compared against your own earlier results rather than against other people.
How often should skin analysis be repeated?
Every six to twelve months is reasonable for tracking, or before and after a treatment course to assess whether it produced measurable change. More frequent scanning rarely adds information, since skin change happens over months rather than weeks.
Does VISIA hurt or involve any radiation risk?
No. It is photography. The analysis involves resting your face in a positioning frame while a series of images are captured under different lighting conditions, including a brief ultraviolet exposure comparable to normal photographic flash. It takes a few minutes and involves no discomfort.
How much does VISIA cost?
The first analysis is complimentary with a consultation. Follow-up scans for tracking change over time are available separately. Pricing is published on the Plump Medical Spa services page.
Complimentary with consultation, and the honest read on whether anything needs treating.
4667 MacArthur Blvd, Suite 310 — Newport Beach, CA 92660
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