I have acne scars and have seen different doctors and am confused as to what the best treatment should be. Should I have Fraxel Laser or Smoothbeam laser or Cutera Pearl lasers for my acne scars?

I have found Smoothbeam to be very ineffective for most patients but have had excellent results with the Fraxel Restore and Fraxel Repair lasers. I have also had great success with the Portrait Plasma resurfacing device. The Fraxel Restore laser, when used with energy settings needed to improve acne scars, amazingly does not create wounds to which you need to apply ointment multiple times per day to prevent bad scarring. This Fraxel laser does induce redness that is quite visible and lasts for four to five days but the Fraxel Repair laser requires the patient to stay home for several days to take care of their wounds which will take up to ten or twelve days to fully heal. Patients who have the Fraxel repair laser treatment, can be outside, functioning, by the end of the first week but their skin will still be healing. You are limited by the number of Fraxel Repair laser treatments you can have, but Fraxel Restore can be repeated many times every few weeks, with continued improvement.

I want to have Fraxel laser for my sun damage discoloration but I don’t have time for many treatments. What do you suggest?

A consultation is needed to determine what type of sun damage you have and to make sure there are no precancerous conditions. Once it is made apparent that there are only cosmetic issues to treat, then the type of lesions are evaluated as to what the best treatment is for them. Fraxel Repair is a fractional carbon dioxide laser that requires a week to two weeks to heal, with more redness for a month or so, than the Fraxel Restore laser which is a less red color for several days. The Fraxel Restore must be done multiple times, about every three weeks or so, depending on what needs to be treated, but makeup may be applied immediately compared with the Fraxel Repair which requires at home care by yourself and not socializing for at least five to seven days. Followup is very important with the Fraxel Repair so you shouldn’t plan on leaving town in the first week or two if possible as complications can occur and should be addressed by the physician doing the procedure if possible.

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