Fractional Resurfacing Quickly Replacing Dangerous CO2 Treatments
In this month's Elle magazine, New York City dermatologist Dennis Gross, MD says "traditional CO2 resurfacing...was plagued with a prolonged recovery time" and that fractional CO2 is the "wave of the future" because of its ability to produce similar results with a much shorter recovery time.
The history: First generation CO2 lasers removed the entire outer layer of skin in one treatment, leaving the patient with four to six weeks of highly uncomfortable recovery, followed by a very long period of waxy-looking skin, until the epidermis was sufficiently restored. The risk of infection was high and the treatment was highly impractical for most people because of the lengthy downtime requirement.
In reference to this old method of CO2 treatment, New York City dermatologist Dr. Kenneth Mark was quoted in the Elle saying, "It's like taking a blowtorch to the skin."
Still, any ablative laser (meaning the surface of the skin is partially or completely obliterated) will result in a few days or more of downtime and redness that will vary by degree of treatment. There are no lasers that can achieve significant results without inciting damage to the epidermis, which in turn kickstarts the skin's natural healing response which replaces the damaged skin with new, fresh skin.
Dr. Roy Geronemus is a Manhattan dermatologist who has treated over 1000 patients with the new Fraxel Repair laser, a device recognized in the cosmetic laser industry as the leader in fractional resurfacing. A recent study by Dr. Geronemus showed 90% of the patients achieving a 50 to 100% improvement in skin tone and laxity within 3 months of treatment.
Dr. Geronemus is an expert in laser surgery, and according to his website, he owns quite a few of them, including Fraxel™ re:store™ and re:pair™ GentleLase®, Gentlewaves®, GentleYag, Rhytec Portrait® PSR3, CoolTouch III®, Thermage Thermacool NXT, V-Beam®, V-Star, Cynergy Laser System, Q-switched nd:YAG 5, Pulsed dye laser, Q-switched Ruby, Q-switched Alexandrite and Titan," among others.
As always, success breeds imitation, resulting in a flood of new fractional devices to the marketplace, including the MiXto CO2, the Matrix, the SmartXide DOT, the Palomar Lux2940, the Lumenis ActiveFX, and the Pixel.
Doctors appear to be embracing the technology, abandoning the traditional CO2 for fractional, and studying its effects on various skin types and conditions. Dr. Macrene Alexaides-Armenakas, who is studying the SmartXide DOT, says in Elle that she has "been waiting for this breakthrough for over 15 years."
If you're considering fractional resurfacing, be sure you're in the hands of a qualified dermatologist who has photographic results of their own patients for you to see.
Kristin Meyer for Real Beauty News
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