sydney davis

Recent comments

• Posted to Adverse Effects Fraxel Repair on 18 Apr 2012

  There is the Fraxel re:store, a NON-Ablative fractional laser and the Fraxel re:pair, which is ablative. The latter vaporizes the top layer of the skin. It is painful, requiring nerve blocks. The down time (healing) can be up to 2 weeks. There are several reports of scarring with the re:pair. I will be glad to provide the references. The re;store is considerably less effective, tho it does pretty well acne scars, fine wrinkles, large pores etc. It takes 3-5 sessions. The re:pair is generaly a single treatment. The pain with the re:store is not that bad, and the down time for most people is negligible. We have a Palomar Fractonal 1540, very similar to the re:store. Pain and down time pretty much the same as the re:store. I have had it done, simply to see what it's like to be a real patient. No problem. Very little risk.

• Posted to Adverse Effects Fraxel Repair on 18 Mar 2012

  I am a fellow of the American Academy of Dermatology. I am in a practice with 5 satellite offices, 10 derms, 4 PAs, 4 aestheticians, 2 dermpaths etc, the point buying we have a very large volume of cosmetic derm patients.

• Posted to Adverse Effects Fraxel Repair on 18 Mar 2012

  I am sorry you have had such a bad experience. I had a Fraxel re:pair and realized that something was afoot before it was unpacked. My lawyer forced them to take it back. I assume you have been back to the MD that treated you with it. When I agreed to buy mine, I had no idea what was going on. I don't want to say much on this public forum. Anyway, the MD who treated you was probably an innocent victim as well. If you have not, I would go back and talk to her/him and ask for help. If you come across as litigious or angry, which you are and should be, you prob won't get very far. MDs are so paranoid these days. Anyway, there are fractonal NONABLATIVE lasers that can help facial scars significantly. They are not nearly as painful or risky as the re:pair. The re:pair and re:store are quite different, the former being ablative, meaning that it vaporizes the top layer of the skin. The re:store is not ablative. It's been around for years and is actually te gold standard in its class. A contemporary of mine had a re:pair and treated one of his nurses. She had major scarring, but he was able to treat her scars with other lasers. He has had a re:store for years and it has done well. It is the re:pair that is ablative. It's critical to make that distinction. Anyway, the nonablative lasers like the re:store result in minimal pain, down time, and risk. The problem with the re:pair was that the parameters were too aggressive-too much power-to begin with. SD MD

• Posted to Adverse Effects Fraxel Repair on 9 Mar 2012

  I am the senior derm (Cameron L. Smith MD FAAD) in a large practice in eastern NC with 10 derms, 4 PAs, 3 aestheticians, mult satellites etc. I would steer clear of the re:pair. It works well but it is ablative (vaporizes the top layer of the skin), requiring usually 2 weeks or so of down time. There have been a number of reports of scarring. It is very painful, requiring nerve blocks. The re:store, on the other hand, is nonablative. It has been around for years, and works well, with minimal pain and down time. It isn't as effective as the ablative CO2 re:pair, but is much more practical for most people. We like our Palomar 1540 better, and so does our aesthetician, who has used both. I don't know anything about their new dual device. cls md faad

• Posted to Adverse Effects Fraxel Repair on 13 Jul 2009

  Christine, the Reliant people told me repeatedly that you were a hatchet job, a hoax, fostered on them by a competitor. You know the truth and can easily prove it. As for me, if they come after you, by all means have your lawyer contact me and I will provide a deposition that will blow them out of the water. I don't think you need to worry at all about needing a defense attorney. They are trying to intimidate you. They tried that with me when I refused to pay for their laser, but my lawyer is a bulldog and they folded. I believe you have my contact info.