Active FX Vs. Fraxel Repair - What's the Difference?

They are BOTH CO2 Fractional lasers. Different companies same wavelengths. Often companies claim that "deeper is better" for the tightening aspect. Deeper also means, longer recovery times and I have yet to see 1 study that shows it is necessary to achieve similar results. There are many CO2 fractional lasers on the market today such as: "Affirm CO2 Micro Ablative" (which I have and LOVE IT!) and many more. My "Affirm CO2 is extremely comfortable as I can dial in... more

Fraxel repair and ActiveFX are both fractional CO2 lasers but made by different companies. Fraxel Repair is made by Reliant, and ActiveFX is made by Lumenis. The ActiveFX is a superficial treatment that is excellent for removing pigment and superficial sun damage, but wrinkle removal is less than with the deeper penetrating Fraxel Repair. Lumenis, the company that makes ActiveFX also makes a laser called DeepFX which is comparable to the Fraxel Repair. In addition to these fractional CO2... more

The Active FX is a much more superficial treatment than is the Fraxel Repair. The Active FX will do a better job on brown spots than the Fraxel Repair. Conversely, the Fraxel Repair will do a better job on wrinkles. The real comparison is between the Fraxel Repair and the Deep FX laser. We recently completed a study comparing these two systems. Neither the Fraxel Repair nor the Deep FX laser is as effective on brown spots as is the Active FX laser. However, both the Deep FX and the... more