SkinMedica Dermal Repair Cream for dry sensitive skin
Tetrahexyldecyl Ascorbate
Sodium Hyaluronate
Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Juice
Dimethicone
GlycerinAverage
- SuperiorDry Skin Fit
- AverageEffectiveness
- HighSafety
Works for dry sensitive skin; other moisturizers fit it better.
This fit is calculated for the concerns frequently associated with dry sensitive skin: flakiness, tightness, redness, fine lines, and wrinkles. For scores and recommendations based on your full skin profile, including your 12D face scan results and any goals or preferences you have, please use the Lovi app.
Page built Nov 8, 2026How the Fit score works
Lovi Assistant explains
- Offers excellent moisturizing and barrier repair for your dry skin due to the presence of sodium hyaluronate, glycerin, and squalane, which hydrate and support the skin barrier. Dimethicone and tocopheryl acetate further enhance texture and provide antioxidant benefits, though specialized ingredients for flakiness are absent.
- The formula includes soothing agents like Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Juice and Allantoin, which are beneficial for your sensitive skin by reducing potential irritation.
- The product is safe for your dry and sensitive skin as it contains no harsh ingredients and includes beneficial components that minimize irritation.
How to apply
- Could be used as part of your AM or PM routine. Start using this moisturizer 3 times a week and move to daily use if your dry skin tolerates it well.
- Apply this moisturizer after cleansing and toner in the morning, or after your serum in the evening. Always pair it with SPF in the morning.
- Gently press a small amount of the moisturizer into your skin. Avoid rubbing it harshly to protect your sensitive skin.
- Apply the moisturizer on slightly damp skin to help with hydration absorption. This also works well for dry and flaky skin types.
- Do a patch test before your first use. Avoid the eye area to prevent any irritation.
People Say
★4.7Overall rating based on 1000+ reviewsThis product is highly praised for delivering intense, lasting hydration, significantly improving skin texture and softness, and promoting a more youthful appearance. It is particularly beneficial for dry, mature, or climate-stressed skin. Some users with oily or acne-prone skin find it too rich.
Highlights
Deeply hydrating Mostly Mentioned
- “My skin feels moisturized all day long.”
- “Provides intense skin hydration.”
- “Leaves my skin hydrated and soft.”
Improves texture Often Mentioned
- “My face feels so smooth and glowing.”
- “Significant change in skin texture.”
- “Skin feels soft and plump.”
Anti-aging benefits Sometimes Noted
- “Wrinkles were reduced and pores shrunk.”
- “Helps retain youthfulness over time.”
- “Creases in my forehead became more shallow.”
Non-greasy feel Sometimes Noted
- “Rich but not heavy.”
- “Absorbs into skin well.”
- “Not greasy, feels great on face.”
Expensive product Sometimes Noted
- “Very expensive for the amount.”
- “Hard to justify the cost.”
- “Price is quite high.”
Causes breakouts Rarely Noted
- “Caused acne.”
- “May clog pores if used in high concentrations.”
- “Too rich for acne-prone skin.”
Packaging issues Rarely Noted
- “Not a fan of the new packaging.”
- “Feels like a waste of plastic.”
- “Difficult to get all the product out.”
Unpleasant scent Rarely Noted
- “The smell is a little off-putting.”
- “Not a fan of the fragrance.”
- “Scent could be better.”
Sources: lovi.care, skinmedica.com, lovelyskin.com, dermstore.com, walmart.com, nlimedspa.com, and more
Questions and answers
How well does Dermal Repair Cream work for dry sensitive skin?
SkinMedica Dermal Repair Cream works reasonably well for dry sensitive skin by providing good hydration and soothing irritated areas, though other products fit this skin type better. A product of this type needs specialized ingredients for flakiness, strong barrier support, and rich moisturizing components to fully address dry sensitive skin.
Which ingredients make this cream a good fit for dry sensitive skin?
This cream is a good fit for dry sensitive skin because it contains sodium hyaluronate, glycerin, and squalane, which help hydrate and support the skin barrier. It also includes soothing agents like aloe and allantoin, which may help calm irritation.
What does Vitamin C do for dry sensitive skin?
Vitamin C helps make dry, sensitive skin feel softer and calmer while improving firmness and reducing redness. Studies show that gentle forms of vitamin C can improve skin hydration and elasticity safely without causing irritation.
What does Hyaluronic Acid do for dry sensitive skin?
Hyaluronic acid is a great fit for dry, sensitive skin because it brings a large boost in hydration, making the skin feel soft and smooth while improving barrier function. It helps calm tightness and dryness, and is unlikely to cause irritation.
Journal of Drugs in Dermatology, 2011Dermatology and Therapy, 2021
Where does this cream go in a skincare routine for dry sensitive skin?
This cream goes as a treatment step in the evening routine, placed after a soothing toner and before your moisturizer. A product of this type for dry sensitive skin needs specialized ingredients to tackle flakiness.
The Journal of Dermatological Treatment, 2022Clinical, Cosmetic and Investigational Dermatology, 2017
Can I use this cream with retinol, and in what order?
You can use this cream in the evening after your retinol product to help keep your skin comfortable and hydrated. This type of product works safely on sensitive skin, though a moisturizer with specialized ingredients for flakiness is better if you tend to peel.
How often should I use this cream?
You can use this moisturizing treatment twice a day as part of your evening routine and morning routine. Regular daily application of moisturizers helps improve skin hydration and supports the skin barrier.
Journal of Cosmetic Dermatology, 2020Health Science Reports, 2021
Can this cream clog pores, cause breakouts or purging for dry sensitive skin?
This cream is unlikely to clog pores or cause breakouts for dry sensitive skin. Reviewers rarely mention breakouts, and the formula is generally safe and gentle.
Can I use this cream around the eyes or on my body?
You can use this moisturizing treatment around the eyes and on the body because it has a gentle formula with safe ingredients that are unlikely to irritate delicate areas. However, for dry sensitive skin, a product of this type needs specialized ingredients to target flakiness and extra hydration.
Is this cream fragrance-free and alcohol-free?
It contains fragrance (parfum, linalool, geraniol, and citronellol) and drying alcohol (alcohol denat).
What the research says
A single application of a moisturizing fluid containing hyaluronic acid 1%, glycerin 5%, and Centella asiatica stem cells extract significantly increased skin hydration by 29% and reduced transepidermal water loss at 24 hours compared to baseline and an untreated control site in twenty healthy women.
Clinical, Cosmetic and Investigational Dermatology, 2017Topical application of 5% vitamin C cream significantly improved global clinical scores, increased skin microrelief density, and induced elastic tissue repair in photoaged skin compared to excipient control in healthy female volunteers.
Experimental Dermatology, 2003Ascorbic acid 2-glucoside gel significantly reduced gingival melanin pigmentation after 4 weeks compared to placebo in 73 subjects with symmetric pigmentation.
Journal of Periodontology, 2009Topical application of VC-IP cream twice daily for 8 weeks reduces periorbital wrinkles in female subjects compared to a placebo cream.
Journal of Cosmetic Dermatology, 2022Topical application of 0.1% hyaluronic acid formulations of different molecular weights led to significant improvements in skin hydration and elasticity, with low-molecular-weight formulations also significantly reducing wrinkle depth in seventy-six female subjects compared to a vehicle control.
Journal of Drugs in Dermatology, 2011Topical application of hyaluronic acid in conjunction with free gingival graft significantly reduced donor site postoperative pain until day 7 compared to normal saline, with no significant differences in graft dimensions or patient satisfaction.
Clinical Oral Investigations, 2022Treatment with a hyaluronic acid-containing mouth rinse or topical gel led to significant lesion reduction, pain relief, and normalization of lesion color in adult patients with minor recurrent aphthous stomatitis, with the gel formulation showing an earlier healing onset at 3 days.
BMC Oral Health, 2019A cream combining propolis, tea tree oil, and Aloe vera reduced erythema scars, acne severity index, and total lesion count better than erythromycin cream in sixty patients with mild to moderate acne vulgaris compared to placebo.
Clinical Pharmacology, 2018Topical aloe vera gel significantly accelerated split-thickness skin graft donor-site healing compared to placebo in 12 patients, but showed no significant difference in pain relief.
Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery, 2018Topical application of Aloe vera cream reduced postoperative pain at rest and during defecation, accelerated wound healing at two weeks, and decreased analgesic requirements in patients after open hemorrhoidectomy compared to placebo.
Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine, 2010Wearing an N95 mask alone compared to using dimethicone cream or hydrocolloid dressing caused more adverse skin reactions among 73 military health care workers, with no significant differences in fit test failure rates between groups.
Military Medicine, 2024Treatment with a moisturizer containing dimethicone and glycerine increased epidermal thickness by 0.019 mm, improved barrier function by decreasing transepidermal water loss by 13%, decreased melanin intensity, and induced keratins 6 and 16 in fifteen women with moderately photoaged forearms.
Clinical and Experimental Dermatology, 2007Externally applied substances such as ceramides, hyaluronic acid, licorice extracts, dimethicone, petrolatum, and paraffin wax treat skin disease resulting from damage to the skin barrier.
Clinics in Dermatology, 2012The emollient V0034CR significantly reduced TEWL compared to vehicle and vehicle plus glycerol, and significantly increased corneometry scores compared to vehicle and vehicle plus petrolatum in healthy volunteers with dry skin, demonstrating combined barrier function improvement from petrolatum and hydration improvement from glycerol.
Journal of Cosmetic Dermatology, 2020Ten days of treatment with a cream containing 20% glycerin significantly increased skin hydration measured by corneometer values in 17 healthy volunteers compared to a placebo cream, but showed no influence on transepidermal water loss or skin sensitivity to an irritating surfactant.
International Journal of Cosmetic Science, 2001Niacinamide/glycerin body moisturizers provided better rapid and prolonged improvement of cosmetic xerosis through functional improvement of stratum corneum barrier function compared to no treatment and conventional moisturizers in female subjects.
Journal of Drugs in Dermatology, 2012
Why other moisturizers fit dry sensitive skin better
Cosmetic formulations containing 5% Centella asiatica extract showed the best efficacy in improving skin moisture and decreasing transepidermal water loss, while also exhibiting antiinflammatory properties in 25 volunteers compared to baseline measurements.
Indian Journal of Pharmaceutical Sciences, 2016Nanoemulsions containing Macadamia integrifolia seed oil successfully enhanced skin hydration and reduced wrinkles in human volunteers, outperforming conventional emulsions in skin hydration enhancement.
Nanomaterials, 2024
Ingredients
Water, Tetrahexyldecyl Ascorbate, Tocopheryl Acetate, Dimethicone, Polymethyl Methacrylate, Glyceryl Stearate, Stearic Acid, Panthenol, Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Juice, Algae Extract, Sodium Hyaluronate, Palmitoyl Hydrolyzed Wheat Protein, Cetyl Esters, Brassica Campestris Aleurites Fordi Oil Copolymer, Panicum Miliaceum Seed Extract, Phytosterols, Tocotrienols, Squalene, Rice Bran Cera, Allantoin, Avena Sativa Kernel Extract, Squalane, Pyridoxine Dipalmitate, Stearyl Glycyrrhetinate, Retinyl Palmitate, Tocopherol, Tocopheryl Linoleate, Aspergillus Aspidosperma Quebracho Ferment, Zea Mays Oil, Phenyl Trimethicone, Cyclopentasiloxane, Polysilicone-11, Lecithin, Glycerin, Cetearyl Alcohol, Carbomer, Acrylates C10-30 Alkyl Acrylate Crosspolymer, Alcohol Denat, Sodium Hydroxide, Tromethamine, Disodium Edta, Phenoxyethanol, Ethylhexylglycerin, Potassium Sorbate, Parfum, Linalool, Geraniol, Citronellol, Beta-Carotene Ci 40800
Behind this fit score
Lovi calculates every fit score from the full ingredient list with brand-independent rules our dermatologists and cosmetic chemists build and review, and personalizes every pick with AI trained on the real results of millions of users. Lovi trains its fit score models on a proprietary dataset built from more than 10,000 expert-labeled products and more than 100,000 simulated examples, following an internally consistent methodology presented at Cosmoprof, AMWC, and Skin of Color Update.
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Co-founder, Medical Director
Cosmetic chemist, cosmetologist, aesthetic products developer
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Co-founder, CEO and CTO
PhD in computer science, 3x US patent holder, ex-Google, ex-Yandex
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Dr. Sofía Perea Pérez, MD, MSc
Medical Board
Aesthetic medicine practitioner, MSc in Longevity and Anti-Aging Medicine
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Medical Board
Specialist dermatologist, MBBS, MD, IFAAD
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Medical Board
Cosmetic chemist, SCS, IFSCC member
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Medical Board, Medical Advisor
Dermatology MD
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Elina Nazarenko, MD
Medical Board
Dermatology and diagnostic consultant
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Victoria Derkova, MS
Medical Board
Cosmetic chemist, cosmetic development technologist
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