Can Cryotherapy Improve Your Skin Health?
Skin CareSkin Treatments & Procedures

Can Cryotherapy Improve Your Skin Health?

Can Cryotherapy Improve Your Skin Health?
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Published on November 17, 2025
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You may have heard of the recent trend of using cryotherapy, a type of cold therapy, as part of athletic recovery (think cold plunges and ice baths). But have you considered what cryotherapy can do for your skin?

Cryotherapy is said to offer therapeutic benefits by exposing the body to cold temperatures — we’re talking extremely cold, as in minus 200 to minus 300 degrees F.

It's a proven medical treatment for certain dermatological conditions, such as removing skin tags and precancerous cells, but using cryotherapy for cosmetic purposes is a relatively new trend.

Here, learn more about the types of cryotherapy for skin and which potential benefits are legitimate.

Types of Cryotherapy for Skin

There are a few types of cryotherapy for skin health, all of which deal with freezing temperatures that are applied to different sections of the body. The most common types of cryotherapy for skin are:

  • Cryoablation, also known as cryosurgery, where a doctor uses extreme cold to remove unwanted tissue, such as warts, dark spots, skin tags, and precancers also known as actinic keratoses

  • Cryofacial is a cosmetic treatment using cooled air or liquid nitrogen, purportedly to improve the skin and offer anti-aging benefits. There is a lack of high-quality studies and clinical evidence for the efficacy and safety of this type of cryotherapy, says Jenna Borok, MD, a board-certified dermatologist with Del Mar M.E.D. in San Diego.
  • Whole-Body Cryotherapy involves stepping into an enclosed chamber filled with air that’s cooled with liquid nitrogen to minus 200 to minus 300.

     Dermatologists note that this treatment has been linked to serious injuries, and has not been conclusively proven to have any health or skin benefits.

     The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has not approved or cleared whole-body cryotherapy as safe or effective to treat any medical condition.

Potential Benefits of Cryotherapy on Skin

The benefits of cryotherapy for skin range from cosmetic to medical. Here are four uses for the different types of cryotherapy.

Can Treat Skin Cancers

Cryotherapy — specifically cryoablation — can be used to treat skin cancers in various stages, from precancerous skin conditions to early-stage cancers like squamous cell carcinoma and basal cell carcinoma.

 When dermatologists or family physicians use cryotherapy in this way, it’s a proven medical treatment supported by research, Dr. Borok says.

With minimally invasive cryoablation, abnormal precancerous cells are frozen off. The area of the skin will then blister and peel off, making way for healthy skin to emerge.

 The exposure to the extreme cold is what kills the cells.

Can Remove Warts, Skin Tags, and Dark Spots

Cryoablation can also be used to get rid of unwanted skin issues, such as warts, skin tags, and dark spots.

 It’s the same procedure that’s used to treat certain types of skin cancers (as described above), where the abnormal tissue is removed with extreme cold via liquid nitrogen. The treatment isn’t typically painful, but may sting for some patients and leave the skin red immediately after treatment. The resulting scab usually heals within three weeks.

This use of cryotherapy is a well-established treatment that’s supported by research, Borok says. Typically, just one round of cryosurgery is needed, but larger or thicker areas may need additional rounds every three or four weeks.

May Reduce Some (but Not All) Visible Signs of Skin Aging

There’s not much data supporting cryotherapy for wrinkles. One previous small study involving 36 people explored the effects of focused cold therapy on forehead wrinkles, using nitrous oxide targeted to the facial nerve. Ninety-one percent found slight improvement in forehead line severity one month post treatment.

Borok says that while you may see cryofacial treatment options offered at med spas that claim to help smooth wrinkles, this benefit is not yet supported by research.

Howard Sobel, MD, a cosmetic dermatologic surgeon at Lenox Hill Hospital in New York City, also doesn’t recommend cryotherapy if your goal is anti-aging. Only a very deep peel with liquid nitrogen would reduce the appearance of wrinkles, but it’s not usually used to remove wrinkles as there are much more effective sources of treatment, Dr. Sobel says. Retinoids, Botox, and fillers are other more conventional wrinkle-treatment options.

Cryotherapy has, however, been used to treat sun spots or age spots (solar lentigo), a sign of photoaging, and Sobel uses that treatment in his practice.

According to one review out of Iran involving about 3,200 participants, cryotherapy showed improvement in about half of the patients with sun spots, but it comes with more side effects than other effective treatment options.

Borok recommends people with dark skin types avoid cryotherapy because there’s an increased risk of hypopigmentation and hyperpigmentation, where the skin can become lighter or darker. Other treatment options include photodynamic therapy, topical chemotherapy, immune-modifying creams, laser surgery, and chemical peeling.

Risks of Cryotherapy for Skin

Most forms of cryotherapy generally come with few risks, but negative side effects are possible and include:

  • Pain or bleeding, if done around the cervix
  • Bone fracture
  • Nerve damage
  • Skin swelling, scarring, or infection
As mentioned above, whole-body cryotherapy using liquid nitrogen can lead to serious harm, including hypoxia (oxygen deficiency), unconsciousness, frostbite, burns, and eye injuries.

Targeted cryotherapy, on the other hand, is a safe and effective medical procedure.

 It’s associated with less pain and bleeding than traditional surgery.

 It comes with a risk of discoloration, but in most cases this resolves within a year (in patients with darker skin, it can lead to permanent change). Keep in mind that cryoablation works by damaging skin tissue, so redness, blistering, and swelling should be expected up to 10 days following treatment.

Who Should Try (and Avoid) Cryotherapy for Skin?

Good candidates for cryotherapy for skin conditions include those with benign skin lesions (such as warts or skin tags) and those with low-risk basal cell carcinoma and squamous cell carcinoma, Borok says.

If you’re seeking cryotherapy for skin, look for a family physician or a dermatologist for cryosurgery. “Patients should confirm that the provider is a licensed physician (MD or DO) and is board-certified in their field,” Borok says.

Cryotherapy is not recommended for pregnant women or those with heart conditions.

 It also can be dangerous for those with nerve damage.

People who are sensitive to cold temperatures or have health conditions that worsen in the cold, such as cryoglobulinemia, multiple myeloma, and Raynaud’s disease, should also avoid cryotherapy.

 Those with poor circulation or a history of frostbite or seizures also should not have liquid nitrogen treatments, Sobel says.

The Takeaway

  • Cryotherapy, or cold therapy, has been used in skin care as an established treatment to remove warts, skin tags, dark spots, and precancerous cells.
  • Other potential cryotherapy skin advantages include wrinkle reduction, but these benefits aren’t yet supported by research.
  • Whole-body cryotherapy can lead to serious injuries and has not been conclusively proven to have any health benefits. This treatment has not been approved by the FDA to treat any medical or skin condition.
EDITORIAL SOURCES
Everyday Health follows strict sourcing guidelines to ensure the accuracy of its content, outlined in our editorial policy. We use only trustworthy sources, including peer-reviewed studies, board-certified medical experts, patients with lived experience, and information from top institutions.
Resources
  1. Orlando J et al. Whole Body Cryotherapy. Connecticut General Assembly. 2016.
  2. Cryotherapy. Cleveland Clinic. May 29, 2020.
  3. Whole Body Cryotherapy Can Be Hazardous to Your Skin. American Academy of Dermatology Association. July 17, 2023.
  4. Whole Body Cryotherapy (WBC): A “Cool” Trend that Lacks Evidence, Poses Risks. U.S. Food and Drug Administration. July 2016.
  5. Erinjeri JP et al. Cryoablation: Mechanism of Action and Devices. The Journal of Vascular and Interventional Radiology. July 28, 2019.
  6. Prohaska J et al. Cryotherapy in Dermatology. StatPearls. September 15, 2023.
  7. Palmer FR et al. Safety and Effectiveness of Focused Cold Therapy for the Treatment of Hyperdynamic Forehead Wrinkles. Dermatologic Surgery. February 2015.
  8. Wrinkles. Mayo Clinic. December 12, 2023.
  9. Mardani G et al. Treatment of Solar Lentigines: A Systematic Review of Clinical Trials. Journal of Cosmetic Dermatology. March 27, 2025.
  10. Non-surgical Local Treatments for Basal and Squamous Cell Skin Cancers. American Cancer Society. October 31, 2023.
  11. Cryotherapy for Skin Lesions. Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center. December 15, 2022.
  12. George B. Cryotherapy for Athletes. Mass General Brigham. August 9, 2024.
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Jane Yoo

Jane Yoo, MD, MPP

Medical Reviewer

Dr. Jane Yoo is an internationally recognized Korean American dual board-certified cosmetic dermatologist and Mohs surgeon practicing in New York City. She graduated with a bachelor of science in biology from Massachusetts Institute of Technology and obtained a master's degree in public policy from Harvard University.

Yoo completed her dermatology residency at Albert Einstein College of Medicine followed by a Mohs Micrographic Surgery fellowship at Yale School of Medicine. She is the founder of the Clinical Research Center of New York and conducts clinical trials for numerous skincare, pharmaceutical, and energy-based device companies.

As a spokesperson for the Skin Cancer Foundation, she is a staunch advocate for skin cancer prevention and lobbying for better sunscreen regulation in the United States. She's also an Abbott World Marathon Majors Six Star Finisher and is currently training for the Sydney Marathon.

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Moira Lawler

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Moira Lawler is a journalist who has spent more than a decade covering a range of health and lifestyle topics, including women's health, nutrition, fitness, mental health, and travel. She received a bachelor's degree from Northwestern University’s Medill School of Journalism and lives in the Chicago suburbs with her husband, two young children, and a giant brown labradoodle.
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