Can a Fractional Laser Be Used for a Mini-lift? Doctor Answers, Tips

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Energy Lift

Fractional laser provides a small amount of skin tightening. For the right patient, such as a patient with minimal looseness who had undergone a mini-lift with good results, this might be an excellent procedure. In experienced hands, the procedure has a high safety factor. In general fractional laser has less downtime than traditional CO2 laser, but the results are less as well. Both fractional and CO2 lasers tighten the skin effectively. Lasers of any type do not fix jowls. Jowls are... more

Brent Moelleken, MD
Beverly Hills Plastic Surgeon

www.drbrent.com

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Minimal results with less down time

I agree with everything the previous answer explained. If the lines are deep, you will get better results with a Phenol peel or a co2 laser peel. Of course, these will have more sown time associated with them since they go deeper in the skin to remove deeper wrinkles.

Toby Mayer, MD
Beverly Hills Facial Plastic Surgeon

www.bevhills.com

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Fractional Laser Primarily Helps Texture, Fine Lines

The Fractional Laser helps improve fine lines and texture. The stimulation of the collagen layer in the skin does help with the appearance of the skin. How much shrinkage or tightening we see is hard to measure: we do see some tightening. It's hard to say that it really makes a facelift any tighter, though. The good clinical research studies haven't proven that yet. It can be hard to separate facts from cool sounding uses of technology.

Paul C. Zwiebel, MD
Denver Plastic Surgeon

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Fractional laser best suited to rejuvenate the skin, not lift

A fractional laser is best suited to rejuvenate the skin, but does not perform a facelift. If your main concern is lax skin and jowls, I would recommend you undergo a facelift. You can achieve some tightening from a fractional laser or other non-ablative laser such as ReFirme or Titan, however, the results are not the same as with a facelift.

Sanjay Grover MD
Orange County Plastic Surgeon

www.doctorgrover.com

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Laser will give you minimal tightening.

Yes, laser does tighten the skin. However, the effect is minimal and cannot in any way be compared to the gold standard of a traditional facelift. Based on your pictures, you could probably get a nice result with the combination of laser, Botox and fat grafting if you do not want to undergo a facelift. Good luck.

David Shafer, MD
New York Plastic Surgeon

www.ShaferPlasticSurgery.com

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You will be Disappointed

Fractional laser is good for skin texture, slight static wrinkles and sun damage. Gravitational change will be addressed with a Facelift-type procedure. This is where you should invest you money. You must not be fooled by marketing gimmicks see video

Miguel Delgado, Jr., MD
San Francisco Plastic Surgeon

www.dr-delgado.com

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Fractional Laser Resurfacing and a Facelift address two different issues

Although both treatments can definitely help improve your appearance and rejuvenate your face, they do so in very different ways. Laser resurfacing treatments are used to address the skin itself: lines, wrinkles, pigmentation, etc. Although it can have some tightening effect on the skin, this is very modest compared to what a Facelift cam achieve. A Facelift is used to reverse a sagging neck or treat jowls that are forming along the jawline. Depending on the extent of the lift, you can... more

Haresh Yalamanchili, MD
Houston Facial Plastic Surgeon

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Fractionated lasers and facelifts solve two different things

Fractionated lasers, like skin peels, help remedy superficial skin problems. These are a great option for someone who has sun-damaged skin or skin that's very thin and loose. However, a facelift serves a different function. A facelift and any "lifting"-type operation serve to tighten deeper tissues and muscles. This can help improve jawline definition and soften deeper wrinkles. The two procedures are used for very different problems and accomplish very different... more

Corey S. Maas, MD
San Francisco Facial Plastic Surgeon

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Energy lift?

Using a fractional CO2 laser for the deeper tissues with a facelift is a novel approach that may offer some contouring advantages. This particular approach is not a mainstream procedure and I would check the credentials of the physician suggesting this approach and ask to speak to some of his/her patients that have had this procedure. All the best, Tal Raine MD

Talmage J. Raine, MD
Chicago Plastic Surgeon

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Fractional Lasers Resurface skin but are NOT a substitute for a Facelift

I love lasers and use them in my practice. But - to obtain a great result, a good Plastic surgeon knows which tool he needs to pull out of his tool box. I would venture to say that the doctor near you offering that exotic sounding " Energy lift" is NOT a real Plastic surgeons. His experience and repertoire are limited to his laser and that is why he tries selling it as a bogus magical lifting tool. A fractional laser, in the right hands, will smooth the skin and... more

Peter A. Aldea, MD
Memphis Plastic Surgeon

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Lasers and face lift

Fractional laser and mini face lift are two different things. I perform various laser treatments of facial skin, depends on what is needed. Fractional lasers have a place in facial rejuvenation, but they do not created dramatic effect. Any laser treatment of facial skin will not create any meaningful tightening of the face, nor create any appreciable face lift effect. The field of facial surgery is full of gimmicks and sub-par procedures. An experienced and expert facial rejuvenation... more

Boris M. Ackerman, MD
Newport Beach Plastic Surgeon

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Fractional laser is not a facelift

Fractional laser treatment to the skin may offer slight improvement to the skin surface and minimal tightening. Laser treatment is not a replacement for a facelift. A facelift, even a mini-lift, will tighten loose skin, tighten loose muscle, and remove/reposition fat. If you need a facelift, then that is the treatment you should seek. An experienced surgeon can give you the best advice after an examination.

Randy J. Buckspan, MD
Austin Plastic Surgeon

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Volume and neck bands

Laser is expensive and minimal in its improvement. It looks like some volume to your cheeks would help. Also correction of the bands in your neck would be important.

Robert M. Freund, MD
New York Plastic Surgeon

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Fractional laser is no substitute for a facelift.

Fractional lasers are highly overrated and if they produce any skin tightening, it is marginal. If you need a facelift, get a facelift from someone who knows what he (or she) is doing.

Vincent N. Zubowicz, MD
Atlanta Plastic Surgeon

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Fractional resurficing with facelift

The fractionated lasers are safe and fairly effective. I have been using them for 5 years and my patients have been happy with the results. The lasers are not an alternative to a Facelift but do they have a synergistic effect.

Jason B. Diamond, MD
Beverly Hills Facial Plastic Surgeon

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Facelift with Laser Resurfacing

The best way to think of this is, if your skin surface has aged (pigmentation, fine lines and wrinkles) AND you have sagging jawline and neck- then the combination of a facelift and a skin resurfacing will potentially give you a synergistic and complementary result. I offer this for patients who are good candidate and have had very nice results. It is important to note that neither procedure replaces the other. They work together.

Amir M. Karam, MD
San Diego Facial Plastic Surgeon

www.drkaram.com

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Fractional laser is not FDA-approved for shrinking connective tissue

The fractional laser is not FDA-approved for shrinking connective tissue. There are no long-term studies. No one knows how long it is going to last or how safe it is. Any fractional lasering done on the underneath side of the skin will necrose fat, which will be problematic over time.

William Portuese, MD
Seattle Facial Plastic Surgeon

www.seattlefacial.com

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J lift with Mixto would be the short answer

The answer is that lasers do not lift, but they can shrink the skin envelope. Lifts do lift, but do not shrink the skin envelope. Currently, we combine both to get the effect of "synergy," where the two together are much better than either alone. With experience, they can be safely done at the same session with a short down time and very pretty results. We have not been able to duplicate our present results with the Fraxel system and prefer the Mixto, which is technically different... more

Nathan Mayl, MD
Fort Lauderdale Plastic Surgeon

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Very little improvement from skin tightening lasers

Skin tightening lasers give very little improvment. I offer it to my patients but make sure that they know it may give 15-20% max improvement.

Steven Wallach, MD
Manhattan Plastic Surgeon

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Lasers might help - so would volume

From your pictures, you might get a very nice result from a liquid facelift using injectable fillers in the cheeks, folds, and jawline to really rejuvenate your look. This would spare you the scars from a mini lift and the recovery from the skin burn from a laser. It's always hard to tell without examining you but this would at least be another approach.

Richard P. Rand, MD, FACS
Seattle Plastic Surgeon

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Energy lift is a marketing euphemism

Fractional laser skin resurfacing can improve wrinkles, improve skin texture, and remove pigment. Very deep treatments combining ablative and non-ablative fractional treatments can provide very slight superficial firming of skin around the mouth, but certainly not enough to lift your skin. LuxIR Deep, Thermage, Titan, and Refirme are specific skin tightening treatments that can achieve about 20% of the tightening of a surgical lift, but most patients have to be shown before and after... more

Brooke R. Seckel, MD
Boston Plastic Surgeon

www.drseckel.com

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Fractional lasers do not equal mini lifts

Fractional lasers are minimally ablative lasers ( that means they destroy or remove only a fraction of tissue as compared with more aggresive lasers), and are used in multiple sessions to help with the texture of skin. I have been using the fractional lasers for several years and the results are good for superficial skin. It does not equal a minilift, but can be used with a minilift to improve the skin.

Amir Moradi, MD
San Diego Facial Plastic Surgeon

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Lift and Fractional Laser are two different procedures

Although board certified plastic surgeons might not be big fans of names" lunch time, life style, energy" etc., the underlying technology and mechanism might work. We have to undestand how things work and what are the limitations of every technique. We use fractional laser to tighten faces and treat some laxity. I do not think that this could replace a classic face lift. Two different procedures and two different indications. Hope that helps!

Hisham Seify, MD, PhD
Los Angeles Plastic Surgeon

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Can a Fractional Laser Be Used for a Mini-lift?