Candela Matrix

The Candela Matrix is a radiofrequency workstation that runs three interchangeable applicators: Matrix Pro, Sublative RF and Sublime. FDA cleared it under the name Profound Matrix in December 2021 (K211217), and Candela announced its commercial launch in February 2023. A second clearance, K240070 in July 2024, added percutaneous treatment of facial wrinkles in Fitzpatrick types I to IV with the Matrix Pro applicator, which had previously been cleared for electrocoagulation and hemostasis. The console has a 15 inch touch screen and runs one applicator at a time while monitoring tissue impedance.

Matrix Pro drives bipolar, non-ablative RF through a 7 by 7 grid of 49 sterile microneedles on a disposable 1 square centimeter tip, firing at up to three depths per insertion and as deep as 3.5 mm. Sublative RF delivers bipolar RF through multi-electrode pin tips, with disposable tips in a 64 pin, 12 by 12 mm format or a 44 pin, 3 by 11 mm format, each rated for up to 400 pulses. Sublime combines infrared light with bipolar RF to heat the dermis gradually over several passes.

Two related Candela products cause confusion. The original Profound, launched in 2015, is a long pulse, temperature controlled microneedling system, and FDA's comparison table lists its Dermal cartridge at 10 needles in five pairs and 460 kHz, versus 49 needles at 1 MHz for Matrix Pro. The Sublative RF and Sublime applicators match those of the earlier eTwo system, so a console with those two but no microneedle applicator should be checked for the eTwo name. Matrix Pro is an applicator, not a system.

All three applicators run on disposable tips, so buyers will ask how many unopened Matrix Pro and Sublative tips come with the sale, along with their expiration dates. Say which applicators are included, since each is a separate piece of hardware. Share the software version and service history, and photograph the serial label and the applicator selection screen.