Is Fraxel re:pair different from fraxel laser?

I had fraxel re:pair done 2/15/08. The pre-op info on "some" swelling, and "some" redness that will resolve after 3/5-7 days (respectively), turned out to be 3 full days of not recognizing a square inch of my face and not having the majority of the swelling subside for another week ... as for the redness, i'm still battling that, along w/ itching and skin breakouts !!! Not what I had planned or was told to "expect". Since I still have a way to go, I can't comment on whether the out come to my skin was worth the pain (and the procedure WAS painful !!) and downtime and weekly visits to the dermatologist. Right now it looks worse than before the procedure.

It sounds like you had a very aggressive treatment with the Fraxel re:pair. It is essential that the patient and doctor be on the same page about the aggressiveness of the treatment BEFORE the treatment is done. Discussing these things before treatment is an explanation, discussing them afterwards is an excuse. Anywhere from 5% to 70% of the skin can be treated. The depth of treatment is also variable. When I consult with patients regarding Fraxel re:pair, I explain that the more aggressive the treatment, the longer the recovery. There are some patients who want the best result possible regarding their wrinkles, sagging skin, and sun damage and don't mind if their recovery time is a bit longer. Other patients who don't want much downtime can be treated lighter, and/or have the Fraxel re:store treatment. The skin needs lots of moisturizer after the treatment. Most female patients can use makeup 3-5 days following the treatment to cover up the redness. The procedure is more painful than the Fraxel re:store, local nerve blocks are used in those patients who have pain, it sounds like you did not have a proper nerve block. In patients who do not want to feel a thing, we offer some sedation in the surgicenter. The skin dryness and itching are usually worst at days 3-5 at which time moisturizer needs to be applied often. Lastly, I would make sure that you actually received a Fraxel re:store treatment. There are many patients who believe that they are receiving Fraxel when in fact they are getting a different laser companies "fractionated" treatment. So be sure that you are getting Reliant Fraxel. I hope that this is helpful to you; I look forward to hearing about your results, and please feel free to contact me with any other questions.

I had the fraxel re:pair done about two weeks ago. Everything went fine except there was a lot of pain!!! But the question I have now is to ask if anyone else has had small little bumps appear that don't seem to want to go away. I have never had acne or problem skin just wrinkles. The treatment helped them but I don't understand what these little tiny bumps are on my right cheek. You can hardly see them but I can feel them for sure. I went to see my doc and he thought it was just dryness and that it would heal but so far, they seem about the same. Bumps and not dryness like I had on other parts of my face. Any ideas????? Need help, Diane

Hi Diane, Fraxel re:pair is a more painful procedure than the Fraxel re:store(SR1500) because the CO2 laser actually vaporizes tissue. It helps to have a strong numbing gel applied for 60-75 minutes. A local anesthetic nerve block is used in about 1/2 patients. The local nerve block makes the procedure much more comfortable. For my patients who "do not want to feel a thing" we offer a trip to the out patient OR for a brief IV sedation (similar to when patients have a colonoscopy, no prep necessary the night before). I am glad to hear that the treatment has already helped with your wrinkles (that should continue to improve over the next few months). Without actually seeing the tiny bumps that you can hardly see, but do feel, it is hard to comment. I would advise you to continue to keep your skin very well hydrated, use lots of sun block , and stay in touch with your doctor. The tiny bumps should resolve soon. Ask you doctor if a mild steroid cream might be of some benefit for your right cheek. Please let us know how things go, I'm sure that you will be very pleased with your Fraxel re:pair treatment. Good luck! Dr. P

I have a consultation scheduled for april 25 to see if I'm a good candidate for the fraxel re:pair. I blog is making think twice. Maybe I should just go with a mini-face lift. All comments welcome.

Hi All, I've done a lot of reading on this - the Fraxel Repair (or "Re:pair as opposed to Fraxel Restore, which uses erbium fractional laser) has only yesterday become available in Australia. Fraxel Re:pair is CO2 fractional laser requiring only 1 treatment(there's a few different brands), whereas Fractional Restore is the current one using erbium that requires several treatments (needs about 3 - 5). Yesterday i went to see the first Australian dermotologies that's using it (Dr A). He'd done it on his neck to try it out (looks like a VERY agressive treatment. All red, bleading, weeping after 18hrs post-). Today I went to see the leading Sydney laser treatment centre today (Dr B) - he's getting the laser in 2 weeks. He has a list as long as your arm of a waiting list. I want to see the results before i commit to it. I am waiting for you guys to tell me how it goes, plus the results from Dr A and B. Dr B told me he's NEVER had any probs with current Fraxel Restore, which makes me a bit sceptical after reading all these nightmare stories. I'm hoping it's just a matter of time and that you have to wait to see good results. What we do for looks, eh! LMN

Hi Mike, It sounds like you are going to have a great result. In a few months if your deeper acne scars are still bothersome, you can have another treatment localized to the areas that bother you. Good luck. Dr. P

Hey Dr Persky, This is a great site I have stumbled upon. I am a practitioner in LA and was unclear about the difference between Fraxel re:pair and Fraxel re:store. Now I am very clear about it. Wow, re:pair sounds really intense! We use re:store and we are new to the laser. Pt's seem to have minimal downtime, but we have not yet had a pt finish the recommended series of 4 treatments. I am excited to see what the results will be. I am actually getting ready to have my first treatment in 2 weeks. My question is this, would a series of 4 treatments with re:store be equivalent to one of re:pair?

Hi Dana, The quick answer is no. Re:pair is ablative and actually removes a volume of skin so that the tightening is greater, especially in the lax skin of the neck. The changes seen in color, tone, and texture may be close on the face. Good luck with your treatments, I'm sure that you will be pleased. Dr. P

Dr P, what is your affiliation with Reliant Technologies (the makers of the Fraxel)? - LM

Hi Dr. P. I wrote awhile back about having the fraxel re:pair for my wrinkles and then having a problem with tiny bumps on my cheek. I thought it might be interesting for others to hear what I have since discovered. First of all, the cheek with all the little bumps is on the same cheek that experienced so much more pain than the other one. I don't know if there is a connection, but seems there might be. After the first few days of vinegar water and aquafur gel, the Dr. told me to start using the cetaphil cleanser and the cetaphil moisturizing cream. Everytime I used it, my face would turn a brilliant red which didn't leave and if fact got worse everyday, and the bumps seemed to get more raised. Then I started to notice this burnt look on my eyelids and around my chin. I tried everything I could think of as I began to realize that I might be allergic to the cetaphil. I finally cooked some rolled oats up but not too solid and strained them through a strainer. I took the oatmeal juice and after it cooled, plastered it all over my face. Instantly I felt some relief and suprisingly when I washed it away my face looked tons better. I went to the store and bought some Aveno moisturizer. The tube cost about three bucks and some aveno foam cleanser. I used this every morning and at night tried putting on the aquafur before bed. NOW! my skin is really healing properly. The bumps are getting smaller and fading more everyday and my skin is looking wonderful. Since then, after digging around on the net, I was suprised to find that there are a number of people who are allergic to cetaphil. Who knew???? Hope this helps. Diane