Fraxel Laser Safe for Brown, Asian Skin?

Is Fraxel laser safe for brown, Asian brown skin? I'm going to have it done next week. I have brown spots on both of my cheek. Please help. Thank you for your time.

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2 Doctor Answers | Asked by lina4560 in Gatineau Canada

Doctor Answers (2)
Community Comments (1)

Fraxel for the Treatment of Melasma in Asian Patient

Hi Lina, Fraxel re:store is safe to use in all skin types. In Asian skin treated for melasma (brown pigmented area on your cheek), the settings need to be low, and the time interval between treatments need to be longer. It is also important to discuss with your treating physician the use of skin bleaching cream before and after your treatments. Good luck and be well. Dr. P

Michael A. Persky, MD

21 reviews

Los Angeles Facial Plastic Surgeon

drpersky.com

Fraxel is safe for darker skin types

Fraxel is one of the safest lasers for your skin type. Prior to this technology, many of the lasers were risky for asian skin because of the risk of darker discoloration (what is referred to as hyperpigmentation). This risk does exist with this laser, but with the right physician (trained in laser surgery) and with careful evaluation of you skin before and after the treatment, this risk is significantly reduced. I have seen wonderful results in many of the Asian patients that I have treated... more

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chiasnguy 9 Feb 2013

I had laser skin resurfacing in October for acne scars. My doctor said she used erbium on my cheek where I had deeper scars and fraxel for the rest of my face. I was pretreated with hydroquinone to prevent hyperpigmentation which I was really concerned about. It's been 3 months and what a rough recovery. I did not expect the downtime to be so long. Going into it she said I would be presentable in a month. WRONG!The most troublesome side effects were redness and hyperpigmentation. Redness all over my face but especially on my cheeks and brownish discoloration on my cheeks,temples and mostly where she used the Erbium. I followed the after care instructions: wore sunscreen, stayed out of the sun and had to wear make up (which is very distressing for a guy). To say that it was very disruptive to my social and recreational life is an understatement. Long story short, it's been 3 months and while the redness started to subside, it was blotchy. I was more red in areas where she really went deep. The hyperpigmentation got lighter but still obvious. I was so sick of it so I consulted another clinic and they recommended Mealanage peel. It's been a week after the peel and so far I'm it looks like I will be HAPPY with the results. It did not hurt, but the first 3 days I was peeling like crazy and very red. This made me feel rather depressed and worried that I would have to go through more downtime. BUT after that the redness lessened and I could tell the brown discoloration has lightened significantly. I'm still peeling minimally and continuing with the creams they gave me. The results take up to 8 weeks for full effect. I'm very satisfied with the results so far. My skin looks more even, the pores are much smaller and the discoloration is lighter. In hindsight I'm still not sure if the laser surgery was worth the downtime. The scars have gotten shallower and my doctor says benefits from laser continue up to 6 months. I am certain though that I would not want to relive the past 3 months.

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