Matricium is described as a sterile medical device formulated to regenerate the skin (especially post-procedure damaged skin) by “recreating an ideal cellular environment”.
Its biomimetic formula is made of essential nutrients found naturally in the skin, literally like skin food : amino acids, hyaluronic acid, vitamins (niacinamide, vitamin C) and mineral salts…
It doesn’t contain preservatives, hence the sterile single dose packaging (you get 30 in the box). Each dose contains 1ml of product which is enough for two generous applications (it can be used within 12 hours after opening it by putting the stopper back on as you can see on the photo bellow).
This isn’t supposed to replace one of your regular skincare products but it’s more of an occasional treatment for irritated skin. That’s actually why I wanted to try it. I’d heard Renée @gothamista mention it in one of her videos when I saw it at a good price (38€) in a pharmacy. So I decided to get it!
Since Matricium has a watery texture, I decided to use it in place of my serum step. I’ve found that a streamlined routine is key with this to get the best results. For the first couple of days I used it in a simple routine between my hydrating toner and face oil. The results were very promising – soothed skin, less redness with an overall more even skin tone.
However I missed some of my other active serums and decided to reintroduce them in my routines which was a mistake. As a result, my skin was blotchy. Matricium is a complete formula and I was overloading it with the other serums. So I reverted back to my simple routines.
After that I didn’t notice much improvement in my skin. The problem is that I was unknowingly using an expired retinol oil at the time which must have impacted the results. So I needed to try it again to better judge how it performed.
The second time around, I consistently used them in a simple routine and I believe that it’s definitely the way to go for better results!
Again, for the first couple of days, I noticed that my skin was overall more calm. However, after some time, I noticed a difference between the areas where I had breakouts (there wasn’t much improvement there) and the rest of my face where my skin tone was more even. That’s when I missed my other actives. Now, it’s not designed to treat spots but as an overall skin regenerating formula, I expected that it would also accelerate the healing of blemishes.
Matricium seems to keep everything calm. I didn’t get any new big blemishes but the ones that were there didn’t go away more quickly than usual. Still I think that it’s a good option if you want to strengthen your skin barrier. However I wouldn’t use it as a 30-day cure but as more of an occasional treatment when my skin is sensitized.
The packaging isn’t environmentally friendly (plastic single doses). The upside, as I’ve mentioned, is that it’s supposed to be for occasional use only when skin is irritated. Unopened, it can last longer (2 years for mine) which means that you can get a box and keep the doses for when you need them.
The box usually retails for around 45€.
EDIT: I actually repurchased a box in 2022 to use after cosmetic needling at home and it works brilliantly along with my Physiogel cream to help accelerate skin healing.