Ablative Laser Skin Resurfacing
What is ablative laser skin resurfacing?
Ablative laser skin resurfacing is a laser treatment that improves the look and quality of your skin. It can reduce wrinkles and fine lines on the face and also helps improve the texture, tone, and overall appearance of your skin. It is a safe and versatile treatment for most skin types that delivers impressive results for patients of all ages.
Dr. Bradford Lee provides ablative laser skin resurfacing to treat a range of concerns, including:
- Facial wrinkles and fine lines
- Sun damage and photoaging (e.g. pigment, freckles, and brown spots)
- Uneven skin texture and tone
- Crepey, thin skin on the eyelids
- Festoons and swelling of the lower eyelids
- Rosacea/rhinophyma of the nose
- Scars (including acne scars and surgical scars)
This 77-year-old patient was bothered by deep wrinkles and textural skin changes and was looking for a dramatic way to rejuvenate the skin. She had two sessions of CO2 laser resurfacing and was able to achieve smoother, more radiant skin that helped stimulate collagen and removed years of sun damage.
This 60+ year-old male presented with deep wrinkles and textural changes of the cheek. He had 1 session of CO2 laser resurfacing to tighten the skin and smooth the wrinkles and textural changes.
How does ablative laser skin resurfacing work?
Ablative laser skin resurfacing involves using an ablative laser to vaporize the upper layers of skin and stimulate collagen production. The laser delivers energy into the skin that heats and tightens the skin at the same time. The body triggers a healing response that boosts new collagen production, tightens the skin, and gives a more youthful fresh appearance to the skin. The entire treatment is incredibly precise and can be calibrated with different laser settings to treat different skin types, conditions, and severity of skin damage and aging.
Testimonials
This patient was bothered by “festoons” of the lower eyelid, which are collections of fluid that cause fluctuating eyelid swelling of the lower lids. He underwent two sessions of CO2 laser resurfacing to tighten the skin and improve the festoons.
Our Types of Laser Skin Resurfacing
CO2 Laser Resurfacing
CO2 laser skin resurfacing is considered the gold standard for ablative laser skin resurfacing due to its consistent, impressive results. The laser emits energy at specific wavelengths that are efficiently absorbed by cells in the epidermis and dermis to vaporize, tighten, and stimulate a regenerative response. Patients can adjust the intensity of the treatment to match their goals. The best candidates for CO2 laser resurfacing are light, fair-skinned patients (i.e. Caucasian to light Asian skin) although CO2 can be used with more conservative settings to treat darker skin types.
Erbium YAG Skin Resurfacing
Erbium YAG skin resurfacing is similar to CO2 laser skin resurfacing but uses a different wavelength that is effective and safe for a broader range of skin types (ranging from fair to light brown skin types). The wavelength used in Erbium YAG results in a lower risk of temporary hyperpigmentation in darker skin types. It is very precise in how it treats, tightens, and vaporizes the outer layers of skin. It can deliver a milder laser “micropeel” that vaporizes only the thinnest outer layer of dead skin so that you have a beautiful, healthy glow to the skin with slightly less downtime than a CO2 laser resurfacing. However, it can also perform an aggressive laser resurfacing that can smooth out deeper lines and wrinkles, remove unwanted sunspots and sun damage, and reveal skin that looks years to decades younger. Compared to our CO2 laser resurfacing treatment, the Erbium YAG does not treat as deep into the skin so the recovery period is a bit faster with slightly less social downtime.
What type of skin resurfacing is right for me?
Both CO2 and Erbium YAG laser resurfacing deliver consistent results and can address a range of concerns. Although these laser treatments can be repeated any number of times, a single treatment results in dramatic and noticeable skin improvement. Dr. Lee and his team will recommend the best laser for you based on your skin type, treatment goals, and tolerance for downtime. We are happy to offer both CO2 and Erbium YAG laser skin resurfacing options and will help you choose the best solution for your skin type and treatment goals.
How does Dr. Bradford Lee customize this treatment?
During your consultation, Dr. Lee will go over all your options so you can get a complete picture of what your ideal laser skin resurfacing treatment would look like. Dr. Lee takes into consideration both your goals and tolerance for downtime when developing your treatment plan. He works with you to find the optimal number of treatments and areas to be treated to achieve your desired results. Some patients prefer to treat only certain parts of the face (e.g. lower eyelids, perioral wrinkles) while others prefer to treat the whole face. Other areas that can be treated include the neck, chest/decollete, and hands depending on a patient’s areas of concern.
Ablative laser resurfacing can also be combined along with facial and eyelid surgery. Some patients appreciate the opportunity to achieve global facial skin improvement during their “down time” recovering from surgery.
Your treatment can last anywhere from 30 minutes to a couple of hours depending on which areas are being treated. Patients apply a topical anesthetic cream for about 1 hour prior to the procedure. During your session, Dr. Lee and his team will treat your target areas with precision and care. Laser skin resurfacing can be combined with neuromodulator injections and dermal fillers with additive benefits to make your skin truly shine.
Why do patients prefer Dr. Lee’s office for laser skin resurfacing?
Ablative laser skin resurfacing is not a minimal downtime “lunchtime” procedure–it is a more aggressive procedure typically performed by medical and surgical practices that results in dramatic rejuvenation but does come with some downtime. As an oculofacial plastic surgeon, Dr. Lee’s experience with ablative lasers and understanding of the skin and deeper tissues of the face are extensive and will help you maximize your results while minimizing the risk of potential complications such as burns, scarring, infections, or ocular injury.
Dr. Lee’s expertise with surgical and non-surgical treatments allows him to advise you on a combination of procedures that will give you your best results and comprehensively treat the signs of facial aging. By taking into account every aspect of your individual features, he provides fully tailored treatment plans for every patient.
What is the downtime for laser skin resurfacing?
Ablative laser skin resurfacing does require some social downtime since the lasered skin is a bit red and oozy for the first week. Patients usually take about 1 to 2 weeks off from work and social engagements to allow their skin to heal. Immediately following treatment, patients will have some redness, oozing, swelling in the lasered areas. Eventually, the dead skin will peel and flake off, revealing fresh and more youthful skin. Within about 7-10 days, the surface of the skin is healed, and the residual redness and swelling resolves within 1-2 months.
For patients who cannot tolerate 1-2 weeks of downtime or prefer more minimally invasive procedures, we offer a variety of other minimal downtime laser and energy procedures that rejuvenate the skin, including intense pulsed light (IPL), radiofrequency microneedling, Picosure, 1064 YAG, and others that can more gradually rejuvenate the skin with a series of treatments.
Schedule Your Consultation Today
Call us today to learn more about ablative laser skin resurfacing and how it can help you get younger and brighter skin. Book your consultation with Dr. Lee to craft a personalized treatment plan.
