Fraxel™ - Related FAQ's

Q: I want to have Fraxel laser, the Restore type, but I’m afraid of pain. Will I be able to handle it?

A: Everyone has a unique pain threshold.  Fraxel Restore laser resurfacing may create different levels of discomfort depending on the energy settings used, such as the density of the fractional beams that strike each unit area of the skin. Cold air comes out of the unit and makes the skin more tolerant of the laser energy and a numbing cream is usually applied in the office prior to the treatment which significantly helps limit the pain that is felt. The great majority of patients do not need any additional treatment.

Q: I had bad acne with cysts and developed many scars several years ago. The acne stopped when I had Accutane three years ago but the acne scars look very red and deep. What can be done to improve their appearance?

A: For ice-pick scars, the ones that are very narrow and deep, I do a series of punch grafts to replace this type of scar with a new piece of skin that is rather flush with the surrounding skin, although sometimes it forms a slightly raised surface. Those can be resurfaced later.  The redness is from the inflammation and new blood vessel formation of the acne and makes the scars look deeper by the illusion of shadow as the red color is dark and that is perceived as a deeper scar. The V-beam laser can decrease the redness making the scars look less noticeable.  Usually it takes about three to five monthly treatments to get good improvement with the color.   Shallow crater scars can be markedly improved with the Fraxel laser, whether a series of Fraxel Restore lasers or one Fraxel Repair laser. There are more risks with the Fraxel Repair laser and much more downtime than the Fraxel Restore laser. There is also less pigmentary concern with the Fraxel Restore than the Fraxel Repair laser for dark-skinned people who are prone to post-inflammatory hyperpigmentation.

Q: Why doesn’t repeat Fraxel treatments ruin the new collagen that is being produced in the previous treatment?

A: Each treatment induces more collagen production.  The Fraxel laser is not an ablative laser and it works by the dermal collagen absorbing the 1550nm. laser energy and producing more collagen as a response to the stimulus.  Therefore, with each additional treatment, the newly produced collagen is added to the previous amount without burning it away.

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