Dr. Michelle Rodrigues

Dr. Michelle Rodrigues Dermatologist in Melbourne providing innovative, comprehensive and personalised care for adults and children.

Areas of expertise include pigment disorders, skin of colour, photoaging and aesthetic treatments in doverse skin types. Dr. Rodrigues is the director of Chroma Dermatology, Pigment and Skin of Colour Centre (Wheelers Hill, Doncaster). She also holds consultant dermatology the Royal Children's Hospitals and is a co-founder of Australia's first multi-disciplinary vitiligo clinic. Her areas of expertise include pigment conditions, skin conditions in skin of colour and laser surgery. She is also an interest in hyperhidrosis (excessive sweating) and acne scarring. Dr. Rodrigues brings her passion and knowledge gained in world renowned pigment and skin of colour centres around the world to the suburbs of Melbourne. For more information visit
www.drmichellerodrigues.com
www.chromaderm.com.au

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12/03/2026

Don’t forget the most overlooked part of skin aging: the mitochondria

Supporting mitochondrial health requires a biologically informed approach:

✔ antioxidants
✔ photoprotection
✔ adequate sleep
✔ nutrition that supports cellular energy

Ageing well isn’t about doing more —
it’s about protecting what matters most.

dria

10/03/2026

💡Skin ageing doesn’t start at the surface.
It starts inside your cells.

🧫Mitochondria are the energy engines of skin cells — responsible for repair, pigment regulation and collagen synthesis.

📚PubMed research shows that your age, UV, pollution, chronic inflammation and poor sleep accelerate mitochondrial dysfunction, leading to faster ageing, wrinkles and uneven pigmentation.

☺️The good news is that we can do things to help our mitochondria and therefore reduce the visible signs of aging.

👌🏽Save this post to remember to come back to part two…practical tips on how to improve mitochondrial function!

05/03/2026

Some facial pigmentation — especially in medium to darker skin tones — is frequently misdiagnosed.

Conditions like lichen planus pigmentosus (LPP) and Riehl’s melanosis (now called acquired dermal macular hyperpigmentation) cause deep inflammatory pigmentation, which explains why:

• lightening creams and peels don’t work
• lasers worsen pigment in some cases
• results plateau despite “doing everything right”

One of our recent international PubMed-indexed study (PMID: 40913266) showed that oral isotretinoin may improve these conditions, particularly when treatment starts early and strategies are adapted to skin phototype.

✨ The takeaway?
Correct diagnosis matters.
Early intervention matters.
And pigmentation is never one-size-fits-all.

If your pigment isn’t improving — it may not be melasma at all.

🔖 Save this
📤 Share with someone who’s tried everything
👩🏽‍⚕️ Always seek expert assessment for persistent pigmentation

03/03/2026

✅Most men protect their face.
‼️But forget the scalp.

🤩New research published in the Journal of Investigative Dermatology shows that bald and thinning scalp skin responds very differently to UV exposure — with slower DNA repair and stronger cancer-promoting pathways.

This may explain why scalp squamous cell carcinomas are often more aggressive and harder to treat.

😎If you can see your scalp — the sun can too.

🎩 Hats matter
🧴 Scalp sunscreen matters
🔍 Skin checks matter

This is something every man needs to know.

➡️ Share this with someone you care about.
➡️ Follow for evidence-based skin cancer education.

27/02/2026

🏋🏽‍♀️ Gym workouts are great for body and mind — but not always for your skin.

‼️Sweat isn’t the enemy.
But sweat + friction + bacteria + delayed cleansing = breakouts.

As a dermatologist, I often see gym-related acne — especially on the chest, back and hairline.

Check out this reel for more info on how to control your acne breakouts if they are related to your gym sessions!

💡 Save this so your skincare doesn’t undo your workouts.
👩🏽‍⚕️ Follow for evidence-based skin tips for real life — not filters.

25/02/2026

Based on new research showing that combined UV + urban particulate exposure induces melanocyte senescence, oxidative stress & mitochondrial dysfunction — key drivers of premature skin ageing.

Learn how to protect your skin from both in this reel and save it if you live in the city!

23/02/2026

‼️New research reveals

Ultra-violet light ☀️+ urban particulate exposure induce ✅melanocyte senescence (pigment cells age)
✅oxidative stress
✅mitochondrial cell (energy stores of cells) dysfunction — key drivers of premature skin ageing.”

Learn more in this reel ☝🏽

19/02/2026

Sunscreen remains essential — but in real life, perfect application is hard.

• It needs to go on 20 minutes before exposure
• It sweats and rubs off
• It’s often under-applied
• It requires reapplication every 2 hours
• Tinted formulas can stain clothing

For patients trying to prevent burning and skin cancer and for those with pigmentation disorders and skin of colour, consistent protection matters — and this is where UPF 50+ clothing becomes a powerful addition to sunscreen. ‘s range makes protection easy and stylish for those looking to prevent skin cancer and skin aging!

I love that their range also works with real life — especially pieces that are breathable, travel-friendly and easy to maintain daily.

The best photoprotection is the one you’ll actually use.

☀️🧢👕

☀️

15/02/2026

Grey hair is not just about age — it’s about stress biology.

For decades, people believed stress turning hair grey was a myth.

But PubMed-published research now confirms:

• Stress affects the pigment cells inside hair follicles
• Nervous system signalling can cause pigment cells to burn out
• Once lost, those cells cannot easily regenerate

🔬 Landmark work by Zhang et al (Nature, 2020) showed stress can permanently deplete pigment stem cells.

🧠 More recent discoveries from Professor David Fisher’s group have shown that the parasympathetic nervous system also directly influences melanocyte stem cells in the hair bulge, linking hair pigmentation to how the body regulates stress and recovery.

This reframes greying as a form of cellular stress memory — not simply getting older.

If your greys appeared during burnout, illness, grief, pregnancy, or chronic stress — science supports your experience.

Tune in for part two on grey hair soon!

📤 Share with someone who needs to hear this
🩺 Follow for evidence-based dermatology

11/02/2026

Melasma is not a laser-curable condition.
It’s chronic, relapsing, and complex.

I’ve had countless people coming to me specifically to have laser for their melasma as they have seen before/after shots on social media with great results “with laser.

✔️ Medical therapies help reduce or clear melasma in the short term
✔️ Lasers support long-term control and reduce frequency and severity of flares (only when the right laser and patient type are chosen).
❌ Lasers alone do not cure it

Evidence matters. Patients deserve honesty.

pigmentation

10/02/2026

Acne isn’t always a surface problem.

New research shows hormones like apelin-12 rise with acne severity and insulin resistance.

This is why personalised, holistic medical acne care matters.

🔬 Not fluff, just robust science.
👩‍⚕️ Dermatologist-led and (ideally!) multidisciplinary

💬 Save this. Share with someone who’s tried everything.





07/02/2026

Astaxanthin is being sold as a skin-firming miracle — and that’s misleading.

✔️ PubMed literature shows only modest improvements in elasticity & hydration
❌ No evidence it tightens skin or rebuilds collagen

Antioxidants protect skin.
They don’t reverse laxity.

If you’ve been told otherwise — that’s marketing, not medicine.

🔁 Share this with someone considering supplements for “firmness”
📌 Save for later
👩‍⚕️ Follow for evidence-based dermatology, not marketing myths!





Address

G15. 202 Jells Road
Wheelers Hill, VIC
3150

Opening Hours

Monday 9am - 5pm
Tuesday 9am - 5pm
Wednesday 9am - 5pm
Thursday 9am - 5pm
Friday 9am - 5pm

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