Fraxel Failed to Work on my Acne Scars

Here's the deal with acne scars: no laser is really going to do all that much for them. Sorry, but acne scars are very difficult to treat and you are never going to go back to where you want with any laser alone. Even with the best of treatments, you are going to have about 50% improvement and that is with fillers such as restylane and perlane, which will be doing the heavy lifting. Prior to having Fraxel, Cool Touch, Fraxel Re:pair and every other laser that has promised to improve acne... more

First beware that Fraxel is a name like Kleenex, they have many Fraxel lasers some good for acne scars some not so good. For moderate to severe acne scars you need ablative lasers with downtime. Erbium yag lasers that go deep such as sciton profractional can get results almost all acne scars in most skin types. Fraxel Re:pair is the CO2 version that can also get results though with more downtime than the erbium yag lasers. If your scarring is mild then you might consider nonablative... more

Dr. Schlessinger has hit it on the head. Fraxel (any generation) is great for fine wrinkles. Deep acne scars are more challenging. The key is improvement. Some ablative laser techniques can improve even deep acne scars but be prepared for significant downtime (think weeks at home with a hoodie and sunglasses). The same applies for chemical peels and dermabrasion. Unfortunately scars are one of the most challenging things we face. Be careful of marketing promises and be sure to consult a... more

Acne scars cannot be eliminated by any means. They can only be improved, regardless of the type of treatment. This discussion should take place with any consultation of acne scars. The improvement of acne scars can be qualitative and quantitative but is never predictable. Fraxel laser works by subjecting the skin surface to pixelated beams of laser light. The depth of treatment is within the dermis and the amount of skin surface treated at any given time is less than 25%. Thus, four... more

Hi Frank, Let's be frank Frank, Fraxel re:fine is the original Fraxel SR1500 but a much weaker version (limited energy and density). It was marketed to be a safe laser for very superficial fine lines and brown spots, not deep acne scars. Fraxel re:pair has been very successful with acne scarring, sometimes in a single treatment, but I always council patients that it may take 1 to 3 treatments depending upon the individual. You should see a huge difference with the Fraxel re:pair. Choose... more

Fractioned lasers will gradually improve your scars. It also depends on how your scars look. Some scars need to be excised first before they actually can get really better. Other times require subcision techniques which require you to use different instruments, such as punch biopsies or needles to elevate depressed scars so that they match the surrounding levels of the skin. You may need more significant approaches for the scars such as co2 resurfacing as well to get the results that you... more

What concerns me is your use of the word "disappear". No one should ever tell you that any procedure, no matter how many you do, will cause your scars to "disappear". The problem with acne scars is that no matter what you do they will never be 100% gone. You could do 20 Fraxel treatments and your scars wouldn't be 100% gone. It's true that the more treatments you do, the better the results but there is a law of diminishing returns and for... more

Hi, If you look at the family of Fraxel Lasers, the Refine is the weakest developed primarily for med spas and non derm or plastic practices.  After that is the Fraxel Restore which is the original Erbium Yag Fraxel.  Finally, the strongest is Fraxel Repair which is one of the most effective fractionated CO2 lasers on the market.  Many of our patients are extremely happy with a series of Fraxel Restores for acne scars since it has minimal downtime.  We tell out... more

I am not surprised that you didn't receive benefit in acne scarring with Fraxel Refine. This laser was developed for the spas and not for physician treatment, therefore it is not expected to penetrate deep enough to affect acne scars. Multiple Fraxel Restore treatments often provide my patients with better acne treatment results than the old fashioned carbon dioxide laser treatment.  Fraxel Repair is the most aggressive laser and it can help acne scars also. See a laser... more

The Fraxel Refine laser is the mildest and least aggressive of all the available Fraxel lasers. In general, the more aggressive the treatment, the greater is the downtime but also the greater are the results. If you have the appropriate kind of acne scarring that is effectively treated by the Fraxel Repair laser, then the Fraxel Repair will do a better job. The question is, do you have the kind of scarring that will respond well to the Fraxel Repair? I don’t know the answer to this... more

There are two kinds of lasers: Ablative: Removes top layer of skin. Requires one treatment. Requires 3-4 weeks of downtime. Non-ablative (Fraxel): Doesn't remove the top layer and doesn't create a raw surface. Requires multiple treatments. Doesn't require downtime. Fraxel is a non-ablative laser that only treats 20% of the area, and therefore requires 5 total treatments. Fraxel works by heating up tissue so the body can lay down collagen. You need to wait 2-3 weeks between treatments.... more