Rejuran Aftercare Timeline: The First Weeks Explained

Rejuran aftercare changes by the day rather than following a single list of precautions. The papules and redness from the injection itself settle within two to three days, activities that raise heat or sweat wait about a week, and the dermal response you actually came for takes several weeks to show. I am Dr. Kim Yeonjin, medical director of the Gangnam clinic, and here is how we walk patients through each stage.

Rejuran's active ingredient is a polynucleotide purified from salmon DNA. A 2026 review in Cureus described this class of material as working partly through activation of the adenosine A2A receptor, producing an anti-inflammatory and regenerative effect, while noting that much of the supporting recovery evidence comes indirectly from wound-healing research rather than from skin-booster trials specifically. That distinction matters for aftercare: the days after injection call for avoiding new irritation while the dermis does its work, rather than adding extra products to speed things along.

The First 48 Hours

Patients can wash with lukewarm water starting about an hour after the injection. Skip scrubbing or exfoliating motions during that first wash and for the following few days. The small bumps and light redness at each injection point are the medication sitting in the dermis, and they typically flatten within two to three days. Light makeup is fine starting the next day, but acids, retinol, and physical scrubs should wait several days. During this window, a gentle moisturizer and sunscreen are the only home-care products a patient needs.

A soft, puffy bump or a faint bruise is a normal part of this stage. What is not normal: a hard, rice-grain-sized nodule that is still there after a week, or pain and warmth that spreads rather than fades. Either of those is a reason to come back in and be seen, not to wait it out.

When to Return to Sauna, Exercise, and Alcohol

Anything that raises facial heat or brings on sweating should wait at least a week. That includes saunas, jjimjilbang-style bathhouses, hot springs, high-intensity exercise, and alcohol. For patients visiting Seoul on a short itinerary, this is a real scheduling constraint rather than a footnote, so we ask about any sauna or spa plans during the consultation before we set the treatment date.

Both of our locations sit inside UHC Group hotel buildings, and treatments are done in private rooms. For patients staying at the hotel, we provide a complimentary oxygen chamber session and a vitamin IV drip. We do not present this as something that medically accelerates healing. It means a patient can rest without having to travel anywhere after the appointment.

How the Results Settle, and Why the Timing of Follow-Ups Matters

A phase 3, randomized, double-blind trial published in the Journal of Korean Medical Science in 2014 treated 72 patients for crow's-feet lines, giving three sessions spaced two weeks apart and following them for twelve weeks afterward. More recently, Lampridou and colleagues, writing in the Journal of Cosmetic Dermatology in 2025, reviewed the existing polynucleotide injection literature and reported improvements across wrinkles, skin texture, and elasticity measures. Read together, these findings point the same direction: judging whether a Rejuran series worked is something to do weeks after the last session, not the week after the first one.

We schedule follow-up visits roughly three to four weeks apart based on each patient's skin assessment, and we reset injection depth and volume at every session rather than repeating the same plan by default. For patients on a fixed return date, we can design the series so the first session happens during the current visit and the remaining sessions are picked up on a later trip, rather than compressing everything into a few days. Our Gangnam location keeps Japanese, Chinese, and English interpreting staff on site, so patients can go through their progress and the plan for the next session in their own language.

Planning a Short Stay Around a Rejuran Series

Because the clinical trial spaced sessions two weeks apart and the dermal response builds over weeks rather than days, a Rejuran plan for a short trip usually means treating what fits into this visit and finishing the series later. Patients who ask for their questions about post-procedure follow-up answered before booking can review how our Gangnam clinic handles same-doctor follow-up visits, which covers the same return-to-the-treating-physician logic that applies here. Patients combining a booster series with a lifting procedure in the same visit may also find it useful to see how we sequence lifting and skin-booster treatments by skin layer before setting a schedule.

FAQ

Can I get all three Rejuran sessions done within a three-day stay?

We do not recommend it. The clinical trial behind Rejuran's crow's-feet data spaced sessions two weeks apart, and compressing that schedule works against how the dermal response is meant to build. For a short stay, one session during the visit and the remaining sessions on a later trip fits the evidence better than fitting three sessions into a few days.

Can I get a lifting treatment on the same day as Rejuran?

It depends on the diagnosis. A heat-based lifting device and an injectable treatment act on different layers of tissue, so they can sometimes be planned together, but the order and spacing between them is something we decide during the consultation, not a fixed rule.

Is it fine to use a sheet mask every day after treatment?

For the first several days, a thick layer of plain moisturizer after cleansing is a better choice than a daily sheet mask, since the injection sites are still settling. Masks with essence, acids, or exfoliating ingredients should wait longer than plain moisturizer does.

Rejuran session planning and travel scheduling are things we work out together during a consultation. If a reaction comes up after any procedure and you are deciding how urgently to be seen, our guide on same-physician follow-up covers the standard we hold ourselves to.