Ava Shamban, MD is our guest on the Dr. Randi Show – Sponsored by
NewBeauty 💄
Celebrity dermatologist, entrepreneur, and acclaimed author Ava Shamban, MD founder of Althaea Skin joins The Dr. Randi Show to introduce her breakthrough at-home skincare device that transforms ordinary routines into results-driven skincare rituals.
Learn how Dr. Ava’s innovative device enhances professional treatments, empowering individuals to achieve dermatologist-level care at home. She also shares personal insights into her entrepreneurial journey, upcoming product innovations, and her vision for elevating everyday skincare into genuine self-care.
Tune in for an insightful conversation on how Ava Shamban, MD is reshaping the future of aesthetics by making powerful skincare solutions accessible to all.
Listen here:
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Episode FAQ
What are the benefits of combining an at-home skin device with in-office aesthetic treatments?
On The Dr. Randi Show, board certified dermatologist Dr. Ava Shamban, owner of AVA MD and SKIN FIVE Med Spa, founder of Althaea Skin, and host of the lifestyle show Dr. Ava Says, shared why she sees at-home devices as the next stage of skincare. She explained that pairing a daily at-home device with skincare can help extend and enhance the results of in-office treatments, and can also give people who cannot easily get to a practice a meaningful way to care for their skin. She discussed the multi-modal handheld device she developed, which combines LED light, radio frequency, and electrical muscle stimulation, along with a skincare line built around the skin’s 24 hour cycle. This reflects Dr. Shamban’s personal and professional experience and is not medical advice.
What inspired the idea of layering skin treatments and creating a multi-modal at-home device?
On The Dr. Randi Show, Dr. Ava Shamban said the idea traces back about 20 years to her work handling the dermatology for the TV show Extreme Makeover, where she was brought in after the surgeons finished to help participants look camera ready. She said that experience showed her she could layer different energy based devices, light sources, and more ablative lasers in a short period of time, an approach she described as disruptive at a time when treatments were typically spaced a month apart. After years of building a practice with several offices using devices and injectables, she said she saw the need for something patients could use at home to extend and enhance in-office results, or to improve skin quality when they cannot get to an office. This reflects Dr. Shamban’s personal and professional experience and is not medical advice.
How does an at-home skin device combine LED light, radio frequency, and electrical muscle stimulation?
On The Dr. Randi Show, Dr. Ava Shamban explained that she did not want to create a one trick pony, so she designed her Althaea Skin handheld device with three energy modalities that mirror in-office technology at a lower energy. She described red, blue, and violet LED light; radio frequency, which she said is designed to tighten the skin and stimulate collagen; and electrical muscle stimulation, which she compared to microcurrent on steroids because it aims to create a real muscle contraction rather than a slight tingle. She added that the violet light is designed for electroporation to help skincare penetrate, and that because the device is not a laser, it can be used right up to the lash line. She shared that it is rechargeable, about the size of an electric toothbrush, comes with a travel case, and received a NewBeauty award for best new device of the year. This reflects Dr. Shamban’s personal and professional experience and is not medical advice.
How do at-home skin devices compare, from gua sha rollers and LED masks to at-home lasers?
On The Dr. Randi Show, Dr. Ava Shamban walked through the range of at-home options. She said rollers made of jade or quartz mainly support lymphatic drainage and deliver no energy, and that LED masks require you to lie still, which she saw as an inefficient use of time. She noted that at-home lasers can cost around $3,500, are much less powerful than what is used in the office, and carry a risk of eye injury if used too close to the eyes. In her view, many lower priced devices are single purpose or underpowered, and she encouraged looking for a device with enough power and more than one modality to see meaningful results. This reflects Dr. Shamban’s personal and professional experience and is not medical advice.
How do you use an at-home skin device on the under-eye area, brows, jawline, and neck?
On The Dr. Randi Show, Dr. Ava Shamban demonstrated her daily routine. She applies a refillable conduction gel made mostly of hyaluronic acid and antioxidants, which she said can be left on afterward as a makeup primer or overnight, then works from the center of the face outward, following the lymphatics. She described choosing blue light for skin clarification or red light to restore, making three slow passes under the eye up to the lash line, and spending about two minutes over the brow, where she said the muscle stimulation can create a brow lift that lasts several hours, while improvement in the under-eye area builds over time with daily use. She also treats the jawline, neck, and upper lip, and noted the device can be held in the non-dominant hand while multitasking. Host Dr. Randi Boyette shared that after treating one side, she noticed that brow sitting higher than the other. This reflects Dr. Shamban’s personal and professional experience and is not medical advice.
Can an at-home skin device work without in-office treatments?
On The Dr. Randi Show, Dr. Ava Shamban compared at-home skin care to caring for your hair and teeth between salon or dental visits. She said that whether someone uses the device to extend in-office results or on its own without access to a dermatologist, she believes it can deliver results over time because of its multiple energy sources, with the key being daily use, just like brushing your teeth. She called the skin your most valuable accessory, and said at-home devices can help people who live outside major cities and do not have easy access to a highly skilled provider. Results vary from person to person. This reflects Dr. Shamban’s personal and professional experience and is not medical advice.
What is circadian rhythm skincare, and how does a day and night serum routine support the skin?
On The Dr. Randi Show, Dr. Ava Shamban explained that she developed the Althaea Skin line to support the skin’s 24 hour cycle, with one set of ingredients designed for daytime use and another for night. The line includes a morning serum, a night serum, and a separate eye gel, all in refillable glass packaging. She suggested applying the serum to clean skin, or on top of any medicated product, followed by sunscreen, and said she finds the formulas soothing and well suited to sensitive skin, including people with rosacea or a little eczema. She also mentioned applying a small amount of the eye gel to the upper lid. This reflects Dr. Shamban’s personal and professional experience and is not medical advice.
Can an in-office Sofwave treatment be paired with an at-home skin device?
On The Dr. Randi Show, Dr. Ava Shamban called pairing Sofwave with at-home device care the ultimate marriage. She explained that Sofwave uses focused ultrasound to lay down parallel beams of energy in the dermis, where the collagen producing fibroblasts are, while her device uses radio frequency for the dermis, electrical muscle stimulation for the muscle, and LED light for the top layer of skin, so the skin is treated layer by layer. Host Dr. Randi Boyette shared that she saw her forehead lift within about six weeks of a Sofwave treatment and now uses an at-home device to help maintain her results. This reflects Dr. Shamban’s personal and professional experience and is not medical advice.
What does it take to bring an at-home beauty device to market?
On The Dr. Randi Show, Dr. Ava Shamban called developing her device a labor of love and said many people told her it could not be done. She named three essentials: finding people with experience in the specific area, including a developer who had worked on Dermaflash, an at-home tool for removing peach fuzz; finding manufacturing, design, and engineering partners who can build an energy based device; and securing funding. She also suggested that practices carrying an at-home device can help patients stay connected to their provider between visits. This reflects Dr. Shamban’s personal and professional experience.
What new at-home skincare products and devices are coming next from Althaea Skin?
On The Dr. Randi Show, Dr. Ava Shamban shared that Althaea Skin plans to release a retinoid, with formulas already developed, along with a soothing wash and an antioxidant mist. She said a larger body version of the device is in development for areas like the décolletage, possibly with something to improve the skin on the hands and knees. She also plans to grow her lifestyle show Dr. Ava Says, which is airing on hotel channels, hopes to start a YouTube show as a board certified dermatologist, and wants to write another book on her Signature Feature concept, the idea that everyone has something beautiful to enhance rather than exaggerate. The products are available at althaeaskin.com. This reflects Dr. Shamban’s personal and professional experience and is not medical advice.
