LASER SKIN RESURFACING

Laser Skin Resurfacing

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FRACTIONAL LASER RESURFACING

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Flawless, soft, gorgeous skin is the envy of many. Unfortunately, it is a reality for few. With all of the environmental and genetic hurdles that plague the human skin day-to-day there has to be an answer. How do you help your skin recover from its long battle against the natural forces causing deep wrinkles, loose, saggy and lax skin, brown spots of sun damage and rough texture and increased pores as well as stretch marks, traumatic and acne scars. Well, here is America’s best kept secret- Fractional CO2 Laser Skin Resurfacing!

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Beginning in the early 90’s traditional CO2 laser skin resurfacing has been held high as an industry leader for a wide variety of skin treatments, however, it had long healing time of several weeks, a prolonged recovery period with pink skin up to 6 months and more complications especially if used on other areas of thinner skin, such as the neck. Now, today with fractional CO2 skin resurfacing we can more safely treat skin conditions with far less downtime, improved healing and reduced complications of this magical laser which is the “gold standard” of skin resurfacing.

 

INTRODUCING FRACTIONAL LASER: A GREAT ALTERNATIVE TO TRADITIONAL LASER TREATMENTS

CO2 Fractional Laser Skin Resurfacing is an ablative procedure which means there is cutting or vaporization of tissue of the skin. You will often hear additional resurfacing terms such as non-ablative or sub-ablative which result from different types of resurfacing lasers. The “Gold Standard” of skin resurfacing continues to remain with the CO2 fractional skin resurfacing laser. In our office we use the SmartXide DOT fractional resurfacing laser.

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Fractional resurfacing skin lasers do not cover the complete skin like a traditional resurfacing laser of the past did. Fractional lasers leave microthermal zones of tissue vaporization with good skin cells in between. The heat given off by the thermal energy of the laser causes the skin to instantly shrink the existing collagen. The injury causes the stimulation of fiboblast cells in the skin to start a cascade to manufacture new collagen and elastin fibers over the next 6 months to continually tighten and improve skin texture. The technological advantage of the new fractional skin resurfacing lasers over the traditional laser is that all then microthermal zones can be adjusted by the physician to be closer or farther apart, deeper or more shallow and changes in energy settings giving a customized treatment depending on the areas of skin treated. Areas such as neck and eyelids use different settings than general face skin and they can be tailored accordingly.

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Laser skin resurfacing unfortunately does not get the front page news in glamor magazines and TV like Botox and Fillers get. This has been cosmetic dermatology’s best best kept secret. With results 50-70% of a full surgical facelift, depending upon the patient, this is definitely a procedure for those unable, not willing or planning later to do a facelift. This procedure will tighten your skin, setting it back 10 years and will improve results if you so choose later to do a facelift.

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“At the age of 58 I had the CO2 Fractional Resurfacing procedure done with Dr. Caglia for severe acne scarring and extremely lax skin. The results were phenomenal and far beyond anything I could have hoped for. The post-procedure discomfort was minimal and lasted only 3-4 days. The staff are very personable, very caring, and were very supportive throughout the entire process. I do plan to have a second procedure done in a few months.”

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What are the Benefits of Fractional Skin Resurfacing?

here are many benefits to Fractional CO2 Laser Skin Resurfacing Repair — take a look for yourself!

• Visible difference when compared to non-ablative treatments.

• Minimal Downtime & Faster Recovery

• Effective and safe

• May be used on other areas of body (hands, Neck)

• Appearance continues to improve over six months

• Improved skin texture, decreased pore size, shrink and tighten loose skin

• Removing lines and wrinkles

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Is Fractional Skin Resurfacing an option for me?

Whether you just want smoother, more radiant-looking skin or you are between the ages of 40-60 looking for an alternative to a facelift, fractional repair offers results at a minimally invasive price.

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When you come to our office, you will be consulting with Dr. Caglia who will be doing your resurfacing procedure, if you choose to do so. At that time you can explain your concerns and he will evaluate you to make sure you are a candidate for this procedure and that this procedure will give you the results you are looking for. During your consultation, you will also find other treatments such as Botox or Fillers that would complement your laser resurfacing procedure. Some skincare treatments may be necessary before beginning your resurfacing procedure and the only way this can be determined is through a consultation with our physician.

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As with all ablative laser procedures patients with skin types V-VI (darkest brown to black skin) are not candidates for this procedure.

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How are Fractional Skin Laser Resurfacing treatments performed?

Most procedures are done with IV conscious sedation with a certified nurse anesthetist. The same type of anesthetic used for some oral surgery or colonoscopy. Some procedures like treatments for stretch marks, scars and some acne scars are done with topical and some oral sedation if needed. We want your procedure to be comfortable.

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The typical procedure for face, neck, and eyelids takes about 1 hour. If eyelids are done a special shield like a contact lens is used to protect your eyes during the procedure.

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When the procedure is completed you will be in the office an additional hour to cool your face with a cooler. When you leave the office your face will barely feel warm and within the next hour that sun-exposed feeling will be gone.

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In your consult we go over all this in detail with you and can give you patients to talk to, to ask any question you may have about how the procedure feels.

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What is Fractional Laser Skin Resurfacing like?

Fractional CO2 Laser Skin Resurfacing patients leave the office with Aquaphor ointment covered over the treated area. The face with resurfacing will tend to have small spots of blood and some leaking of yellow serum during the evening of your procedure. You will be instructed to blot the serum and continually keep your area of treatment covered with Aquaphor until you return to the office the next day to clean and remove dead skin. This will then be recovered with the ointment. You will be shown how to clean your face twice a day and re-apply ointment. The ointment is what we call an occlusive dressing. This allows the skin to heal from underneath and NOT from the top to develop a scab which can develop into scar.

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You will take prophylactic antiviral and antibiotic medication for 6 days to prevent infections.

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The “downtime” for healing and return to work is 6-7 days. After this your face will remain pink and lighten each week over a period of 6-8 weeks. Areas such as the eyes and neck are close to normal at end of one week. Most patients love the pink color on their faces and looks as if you went skiing. Patients are given information on camouflage makeup from “Make Up Forever” to cover any areas that need to be blended, otherwise, you keep your face moisturized with the skincare product regimen that your doctor prescribed. The use of liquid bases can be used over your moisturizer to tone down the pink if so desired.

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