CO2 Lasers for Facial Wrinkles and Skin Tightening?

To properly address this question, one needs to understand the aging process from top to bottom. Starting at the top, our skin ages from environmental insults and time, which causes wrinkles, pigmentation, and lack of elasticity. This portion of aging is best addressed with resurfacing, whether that is peels or laser. CO2 laser is hands-down, without question, the gold standard when it comes to resurfacing. In addition, technology with CO2 lasers, that includes fractionation, has made them significantly more effective with fewer side effects than they had when originally developed and put into practice. Results with proper use of a CO2 laser are both dramatic and stunning.When it comes to tightening, the CO2 laser vaporizes tissue and causes collagen remodeling, which no doubt give some tightening and significant wrinkle reduction. If you are after strictly tightening, there may be better options that you could speak with your physician about. That being said, I have definitely had patients who needed a facelift but did not want to take even a minimally invasive surgical route, so we decided to do CO2 resurfacing, and although they probably still would have benefited from a lift afterwards, they were very pleased with their overall results and tightening.The sagging of our midface, lower face, and neck actually results more from the soft tissues and bone below our skin aging. Our soft tissues lose volume, what volume is left in there redistributes to a lower position, and the entire fat pads descended down our face. This is addressed with surgical lifts and with revolumization. The bottom line is, yes you can get some tightening from a CO2 laser, but that may not be your best option if that is your main goal. With Asian skin especially, you need to seek out someone who is a true expert (as opposed to a self proclaimed expert), as pigmentation changes are more common with even slightly darker skin types.To guarantee you're receiving the highest level of care, seek out a dermatologic surgeon, oculoplastic surgeon, facial plastic surgeon or plastic surgeon who is board certified and fellowship trained in one of these "core four" cosmetic specialties.

Thank you for your question. CO2 is used to tighten the skin and reduce pigmentation. it is recommended to pretreat with a topical hydroquinone to prevent hypopigmentation.

The laser will help yes. It globally tightens the skin. For moderate to significant aging or sagging skin though the best results are obtained with a combo of procedures. Either fat transfer or a facelift greatly augment the results of laser. It all depends on your expectations and how much improvement we are trying to obtain. It starts with a good facial analysis and discussion. I hope this helps.Best of luck,DrC

Great question.  It is difficult to provide you with an accurate assessment based on your concerns without seeing you in person.  CO2 laser treatments are great for treating and improving textural concerns in the skin, such as fine lines and wrinkles, pore size and acne scarring.  Will your skin texture look more rejuvenated and smooth?  The answer is yes. Will the procedure tighten the skin to the degree that you will be satisfied?  That is more difficult to answer, as the procedure is not indicated for skin tightening  For patients in your age range, I like to couple dermal fillers and look at options like fat transfer to the face to lift and volumize.  These treatment options produce a subtle yet rejuvenated look.  You may also consider and RF skin tightening treatment such as Pelleve to tighten the skin.  These are nice options with minimal downtime that product a nice result.

Although the CO2 laser does a wonderful job at fine lines and wrinkles, its primary purpose is not for significant sagging skin, nasolabial folds or marionette lines. The latter two would be best treated by fillers or facelift.

The fractionated CO2 laser will do wonders for the skin.  I would not, however, bank all your hopes on this procedure.  If you have deepening nasolabial folds and marionette lines, then I would recommend dermal fillers or fat grafting in conjuction with the CO2 laser (usually done afterwards).