Before treatment, a topical anesthetic cream is applied and you'll be given protective eyewear. Because this is a nonablative laser treatment (meaning that it leaves the surface of the skin intact), no other anesthesia is needed.
Your provider uses a handpiece to apply brief pulses of laser energy to the skin. It targets a dime-size area at a time, and a continuous burst of cool air from the Titan laser ensures comfort. Patients describe the treatment sensation as a mild stinging, similar to a rubber band being snapped against the skin.Â
After the procedure, it’s normal to feel a warm sensation, redness, and minor swelling (like a mild sunburn), but these side effects resolve after a few hours. The treatment area may also become temporarily white (a condition called blanching). This usually lasts for a day or less.Â
Total treatment time varies, but treating the face should take about an hour. “The Titan procedure is very technique-dependent. In order to get an adequate treatment, the operator needs to do multiple passes over the face, which can take over an hour. If your treatment is done in 15 minutes, you’re definitely not getting an adequate treatment, ” says Dr. Lee.
